


Gem Re:Ascension Act I ~ Follow The Leader

by Shinneth



Series: Gem Ascension Saga [1]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternative to Change Your Mind, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Anger Management, Ascension, Background Character Death, Badass Peridot (Steven Universe), Canon Compliant, Changing Tenses, Character Development, Cliffhangers, Codependency, Complete, Crystal Gems, Dark Past, Developing Relationship, Dorks in Love, Enemies to Friends, F/F, F/M, Fate & Destiny, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Headcanon, Healing, Homeworld (Steven Universe), Homeworld Gems - Freeform, Homeworld Hierarchy (Steven Universe), Homeworld is Horrible, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Leadership, Limb Enhancers (Steven Universe), Minor Character Death, Moral Dilemmas, Moral Lessons, Morally Ambiguous Character, Near Death Experiences, Novel, Original Character Death(s), POV Third Person, Physical Abuse, Platonic Relationships, Recovered Memories, Rescue Missions, Resentment, Responsibility, Revenge, Skeletons In The Closet, Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, Team as Family, Torture, Villain Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-04-12
Packaged: 2020-01-11 22:21:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 78,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18433271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinneth/pseuds/Shinneth
Summary: With Steven, Connie, and the Crystal Gems trapped on Homeworld with no means of escape, it falls on the remaining Crystal Gems on Earth to save them. So, believe in Lapis, Bismuth, Greg... and their leader, Peridot.(Immediately follows Escapism; a Change Your Mind AU)





	1. Minus Five Gems

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Gem Ascension](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17482373) by [Shinneth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinneth/pseuds/Shinneth). 



> What is this, what is this? It *is* Gem Ascension, but now officially split into several smaller chapters and separate acts! It's also gotten cleaned up in terms of formatting, taking out the typos, and rewording certain things. Even little additions here and there. It's basically a polished GA, but this is the version I'll be giving the attention to from this point forward. This is the one that will have artwork gradually poured in. 
> 
> It's also in three proper acts now: the first act is the original GA1 and GA2 combined. Second act will be the side-story, Peridot: The Final Logs, and GA3 naturally is its own third act. So, hopefully this will be easier to digest now that I've had time to calm down and refine my work since all of this was written on a creative caffeine buzz where I frankly went batshit crazy trying to push this all out as quickly as I could. That being said, there will probably be few, if any notes in the future chapters. Admittedly, I did go crazy editing this as well.. all of the end taglines are from certain theme songs for sports entertainment shows. You'll probably notice a similar theme with the chapter naming, as I had to come up with 14 new ones on the spot. That's just how I brand my insanity; don't knock it. I at least tried to make them fit the context of their respective chapters. :P The final chapters of the acts will end on a line of dialogue instead, as GA2 and 3 did.
> 
> I think that's all I need to say on the matter. Enjoy your refurbished creative madness that I call "What if Change Your Mind just went to pot after the first few minutes?"...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peridot is elected to lead what's left of the Crystal Gems to rescue their friends currently imprisoned on Homeworld. She soon finds how daunting the responsibility of being an authority figure can be despite her elaborate planning skills. Only her strong desire to rescue Steven and his friends can keep Peridot in line, but is that really enough to sustain her stability for the long term?

As Gem Homeworld heralded the beginning of Era 3 on a very dour note, the Crystal Gems that remained on Earth were given a clear objective. So many details were unknown to them on how and why negotiations went south with the Diamond Authority, but all that was needed for them to act was the clear message on the sand to send for back-up.

 

Normally, there would be immediate action, but only two pairs of eyes could witness the message as the Watermelon Steven that its namesake projected his consciousness into wrote it in on the beach: Greg, his father who largely stayed out of the conflict with no capability for combat, and Bismuth, a veteran Crystal Gem who had regained her consciousness less than a day ago and hadn't been in active service for thousands of years. Both agreed it wouldn't do their imperiled friends any good to jump into danger without a plan, and especially with so few numbers.

 

It wasn't long before the last possible member of the back-up team became available to them; light poured out from the gemstone as everyone set their eyes on their final and most-needed Crystal Gem to carry out the rescue mission coming into form.

 

"All right! Last, but not least!"

 

"Welcome back, Peridot!"

 

A very antsy and befuddled Peridot opened her eyes to the bright, smiling trio of faces that had circled around her gem in anticipation for his moment. Among the father of her close friend and the Crystal Gem she had only met earlier today, Lapis Lazuli was also present, though she opted to smile smugly instead of giving her former roommate a verbal greeting.

 

"Hi…?" Peridot could only hesitantly answer back, hanging on the end syllable for a bit as she tried to get a handle on the situation. After all, her last memory was being zapped to near-oblivion by her former superior… and split-second sidelong glances indicated that no one else was present on the beach besides Lion and Pumpkin.

 

There was a large crowd that suddenly shrank into a handful of people, yet Peridot could tell she was still in Beach City, there had been no casualties, and for whatever reason, Blue and Yellow Diamond were no longer invading her peaceful home.

 

She assumed upon reforming, there would either be a large massive audience giving her a standing ovation for fearlessly telling off Yellow Diamond for the second time, or she would be on Homeworld awaiting trial to be shattered with extreme prejudice. There seemed to be no possible middle road to this.

 

"I have no idea what to even ask first…"

 

"Things were pretty crazy out there," Bismuth understood. "All following up a wedding, on top of that. Worry not, Tiny." She gestured to the gem to her left. "She agreed to get you up to speed."

 

"Depends which you want first, Crystal Newbie," Lapis offered; the smirk still hadn't faded from her lips. "Good news or bad news?"

 

Peridot's features hardened upon being given the choice. She had been on Earth long enough to know this either meant there was really only bad news and a morale booster, or all good news with the bad news serving as a red herring just to mess with people.

 

In the back of her mind, she recalled how this was the first time she's seen Lapis since her escape to the Moon with all of their belongings. That brought about mixed feelings - primarily good - though that expression Lapis wore brought some irritation inherent with getting the short end of the stick in this split-up.

 

"The least you  _could_  do is give me a moment's respite with good news," she replied, keeping her tone tempered despite her obvious passive-aggression. She wanted to just keep it at that, but couldn't help but hang on that name she was called. "Wait, Crystal  _Newbie?_ "

 

"That's what I said; it's actually your good news," Lapis informed her in a more genuinely positive manner. "Check out your uniform."

 

"My–" Peridot froze before she could say anything more. No longer in the flowing yellow dress she wore for her Flower Girl duties, she was back to donning her default outfit. Still colored just the same, and the aesthetic difference Lapis implied was minor from a purely objective standpoint. But, with the context that came with the yellow diamonds on her knees and torso being replaced, it meant so much more.

 

"Oh. My.  _Stars_."

 

Every word was spaced by a few moments of pause as Peridot took it all in, while trying in vain to contain the hint of a joyous squeal that threatened to escape her mouth. Though this was hardly the time to celebrate anything, her taller companions smiled along, all silently agreeing to at least let the youngest gem have her moment. Very soon, she would have bear the burden placed down on them already.

 

" _Literally_ , my stars! I-I thought they'd never show up! It's been-… been how many months since I called her a clod?! Is it because I said it to her in person this time? Was a heroic sacrifice required?! Maybe my morality meter just wasn't high enough until-"

 

Bismuth's joyous smile became one of confusion as she watched Peridot continue to rant and rave to herself over her well overdue visual alignment shift. "There you go, now you look the part of a Crystal Gem, too!" She forced a grin as she muttered quietly to Lapis, "She knows she could've changed that any time, right…?"

 

"Era 2," Lapis casually replied; she knew no more explanation than that was needed.

 

"Oh, bless her," Bismuth sympathized, trying not to look she pitied the green gem overtly. "I was gonna say she's only short in stature and nothing else after seeing her today. Guess it's also age… unless we're talkin' gaps between us; now  _that's_  pretty big," she said with a chuckle, which Lapis couldn't help but share.

 

"-but if it  _is_  like transitioning from Dark Knight to Paladin, what does going back to level 1 mean to m-" Peridot cut herself off and turned her attention to her two fellow gems. Her childlike enthusiasm transitioned to a childlike tantrum as she stomped over towards them. " _Hey!_  Do you  _really_  think I'm not on to you both? What else could you be laughing about if not the great and lovable yours truly?!"

 

It was  _immensely_  hard for Bismuth not to snort into full-on laughter and make a remark about her short temper. It was even harder not to point out that Peridot unintentionally insulted herself. The laughter seemed contagious, as at this point even Greg had to stifle himself.

 

"Maybe you've got a point," Lapis humored her. "But you're also not the only Crystal Newbie today."

 

That got Peridot's attention, which prompted her to take her attention away from the faces of her acquaintances and look down to notice her friend had received a similar upgrade: a navy blue star adorned the center of her halter top in place of the half-diamond, while a row of smaller stars decorated the hem of her dress where the bottom half of her former "diamond" mark originally was.

 

"Yeah, I wasn't sure whether or not that counts as good news to you, but it's officially a thing for me now, too." The very,  _very_ obvious way Peridot tried to purge away any hint of jealousy in her smile told Lapis all she needed to know.

 

"Welcome to the club as the newest member of the Crystal Gems," Bismuth jovially greeted to Peridot specifically.

 

She had already given Lapis a similar welcome aboard when she reformed ten minutes earlier; of course, Lapis knew by all rights  _she_  was the newest member. She simply couldn't resist passing up on an opportunity to push Peridot's buttons - one thing Lapis begrudgingly could admit to herself she had missed doing since relocating to the Moon.

 

"I reformed before you, so technically I  _did_  earn my stars first," Lapis egged on. She wanted to be sure to get this out of her system right here, right now. Following that, there would be no time for laughing; Bismuth and Greg were already all too aware.

 

Realistically, they all knew it would be impossible to mount a rescue right this very second… whatever would be necessary to answer the call would no doubt involve working around the clock, and no one had any plans for how exactly they would be able to even leave the planet in the first place.

 

But if anyone could formulate a plan of action  _and_  a means of transport in a time crunch like this, it would be the Crystal Gems' youngest non-organic member. And that was only the tip of the iceberg in how crucial it was for Peridot to be part of the rescue team, but Greg had the foresight to let the other gems know ahead of time that front-loading the burden on her could cause their rescue efforts to blow up in their faces before it even starts. Over time, Greg had become familiar enough with Peridot to know some extent of her limitations, even if they spent relatively little time interacting directly.

 

What he did know for certain was how close Steven had become to her, and from what he witnessed of their interactions, Peridot felt like the first gem who came off as something other than a maternal substitution for his son.

 

Well, with Amethyst the term was much looser compared to Garnet and Pearl, but even she had her moments where she'd put her foot down. But really, the eldest of the Shorty Squad embodied more of a cool big sister who could be a role model… sometimes.

 

With Peridot, the widowed father got the vibe that she, more than anything, was a relative equal. Sometimes more so than Connie, even, Peridot embodied the kind of company Steven should keep to best enjoy his remaining years of childhood. Especially now since it was revealed his late wife was Pink Diamond all along, Greg had all but given up on believing Steven could ever truly live like an ordinary human boy.

 

Once he witnessed Steven willfully inherit the mistakes and consequences of Rose and dedicate himself to making things right, Greg couldn't deny his little boy really had grown up too quickly… and it was entirely out of his hands. As a bonus, Peridot's overall ignorance of both Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond made her take that double identity revelation in stride. She had no reason to give the man any grief over it; that was a card even Amethyst would, could, and  _has_  used on Greg.

 

As Greg watched the diminutive gem fail to keep her cool in the eyes of Lapis' trolling, he knew he needed to get some laughs out before getting to business. Unlike previous times, Greg felt he wouldn't be left on Earth to "hold down the fort" for this mission. He had no doubts that the remaining Crystal Gems were competent, but a direct conflict with the Diamond Authority on their home turf would no doubt require everyone on the team to have any chance of success, if the post-wedding battle on this very beach was any indication. With less than half of the combatants on hand, Greg could tell even with so many details flying over his head that he couldn't in all good conscience just spectate.

 

"Sure… th-that's… that's totally how it works," Peridot grunted; hands tightened into fists and shook as she tried not to blow up then and there.

 

Her glorious moment now felt cheapened, and for the life of her, she had a hard time accepting it. Life on Earth had given Peridot some measure of self-discipline, as she learned the hard way that in spite of how easily she could elicit joyous laughter from those around her, often times the technician could easily hurt her friends if she spoke too candidly.

 

"Your timing was just so  _perfect_  back there," she said through gritted teeth. "Wh-why bother proving your loyalty by being the one who finally took out Jasper for good?  _Anyone_  could just call Yellow Diamond a clod to her face, right?"

 

Her attempts to veil her sarcasm took a nosedive from there. "What was I thinking, n-needing to drill straight down the Earth's  _core_  and stop a massive cluster from busting this planet to bits, just to prove I'm a Crystal Gem?!  _Pfft_ , I could have left this rock ages ago and  _still_  get that recognition if I had a cool enough entrance to that silly battle…"

 

While Lapis opted to let Peridot sweat it out a bit longer, because she still felt a twinge of annoyance just hearing Jasper's name even now (and that backhanded reference to her decision to retreat from Earth didn't help matters), Bismuth decided to step in and ease the tension. To have any hope in making it to the imperiled Crystal Gems, the back-up team could not afford to be dysfunctional.

 

"Okay, okay, settle down," the arms specialist gently urged, coming between the two. "Peridot, I know we've just met today, but Steven gave me the rundown about how you ended up joining the cause. Let it be known we're just foolin'."

 

She pointed to the star holding the younger gem's straps together, and Peridot quietly followed the gesture. "Those stars have been inside you this whole time, ever since you first stood up for your friends here on Earth. This Diamond invasion could've happened a long time ago if you had direct contact with Yellow, but here we are. Maybe they were a little late coming in, but there's no shame in being a late bloomer, you hear me?"

 

That last part flew over Peridot's head, as she tilted her hear up to Bismuth. "I'm not a flower, but…" Her features softened then; she was genuinely touched hearing this from a relative stranger. She picked up earlier that Bismuth was a Crystal Gem who predated even Amethyst, and some of her works from the early Era 1 period were documented on Homeworld. So, there was a precedent that this praise was quite meaningful, which made Peridot's beaming that much brighter. "Wow, thanks."

 

"You said you hadn't been poofed since the Crystal Gems first captured you, as I recall," Lapis added, still cool as a cucumber. "There's some cold hard facts if you were looking for a literal answer. Feel better now?"

 

Not even patronizing would kill Peridot's blissful moment now, though she tried to regain some composure before addressing Lapis. " _Nyeh_ , as if Earth's co-savior would fall apart  _that_  easily over some measly aesthetic symbolism."

 

Now she sounded more like herself. But now that Peridot had been given time to take in how good she felt to finally look like she fit into this family - and to a lesser degree she  _was_  happy for Lapis - she remembered why she got this news in the first place.

 

"So, the bad news…" Peridot sobered down, as she already had a sense of dread the moment she acknowledged her current surroundings. Had she gotten the bad news right off, Peridot stood a chance in getting too overwhelmed to the point of destabilizing herself. Too much had happened and still continued to this moment, and the possibilities conjured in her mind were not pleasant ones. "It's Steven, isn't it? Why isn't he here to tell me how cool I look now? Are we seriously the only ones still here…?"

 

Lapis finally ceased her smiling. Bismuth closed her eyes and quietly sighed. Greg's eyes darted off towards the ocean as he tried not to shake and drench his shirt in sweat. Noticing all of this, Peridot gulped and looked to Lapis; she ceased making any noise, not wanting to miss a single detail of what was really going on around here.

 

"It'll take forever to go fully into detail," Lapis prefaced. "And we can't afford to waste more time than we already have, so make do with some abridged bullet points for now. If you need details, ask for them once when you can afford the moment."

 

Peridot silently nodded; she had no desire to constantly halt Lapis with questions between each half-sentence.

 

"Right, so… what happened after we were poofed. Steven was able to prove to Blue and Yellow that he was Pink Diamond before anyone else got hurt. The hostilities ceased there."

 

It was then that Peridot noticed her tablet was sitting in a pile of other supplies nearby Greg; no doubt to make sure everyone was equipped with what they needed for the mission briefing. During the break between Lapis' first sentence and her next, Peridot scrambled over on all-fours to retrieve her tablet, strap it to her wrist, then scoot back to where she was previously. Her attention remained firmly on Lapis as if she had never even moved. She didn't even need to watch herself transcribe the statement onto her tablet.

 

"Next, Steven insisted on assuming his mother's mantle and make up for her transgressions; he believed through the Diamonds, we'll finally find a way to cure the corrupted gems roaming the Earth. In exchange, the Diamonds would bring him to Homeworld to "reunite" with White Diamond and… negotiate there, I guess." Lapis still didn't like that part one bit, and rightfully so. If she hadn't been poofed during the battle, one of the Diamonds definitely would have done it to her later for defiantly speaking out of turn.

 

Peridot understandably tensed up when hearing about the Diamonds, but remained steadfast in absorbing the details. Correctly, she assumed she was the last one getting this news due to the circumstances, and a small part of her wondered why they would take the chance to waste time waiting for her to reform instead of working on a plan immediately. Like Lapis, she knew nothing good would come from everyone being under the Diamonds' custody on their home turf.

 

"So, here's what we're faced with," Lapis said ominously. "All we know right now is that their plans fell through,  _fast_. We have no idea where they are in Homeworld, why negotiations fell through, or how they're in so much trouble that Steven could only give us  _this_  to let us know they're in trouble. And he had to push the limits of reality itself to make it this far. It's up to us to decide what the Crystal Gems do from here."

 

Lapis pointed out to a part of the beach just behind Peridot; an area she had yet to scan. She turned around, then sat up and approached the point indicated by Lapis to see what Steven left for them.

 

The way Lapis talked, it almost implied that Steven was actually here, but alas, all she saw was the very simple request for back-up written in the sand. Once Peridot had a moment to take this in, she approached her comrades, now fully serious and more driven than anyone had ever seen her.

 

"Understood; thank you for the report, Lapis," Peridot said with complete neutrality in her tone. She then looked to Bismuth. "So this message came along a while before I reformed, it seems. The three of you clearly knew this story already… I appreciate your consideration for waiting for my reformation before following the trail, but I must ask, what preparations have you all made in the meantime?"

 

She did  _not_  like how there was only a small collection of supplies and a nearly barren workbench in her sights, and nothing more than debris from the battle.

 

Nothing was organized. A working mode of interstellar transportation was nowhere to be seen.

 

"It's only been an hour or so since we got the news," Bismuth admitted, now looking uneasy with the small gem's intensity. "And, well… as you can see, there's not much in the way of diversity in the group; at least not for what we'll need to come to their rescue."

 

"Basically, we're saying we've been at an impasse before you reformed," Lapis dully added. "Disregarding personal feelings about even going back to that…  _place_ ," she greatly suppressed her disgust at such an idea. "We have no way to get to Homeworld. Even if we could make it there somehow, we won't be much of a rescue team if we don't know where Steven is."

 

"Lapis said she couldn't recognize Homeworld as she remembered it last time she was there," Bismuth followed up. "And me? It's been  _way_  longer than that since I've set foot on Homeworld. No way am I gonna fit as a team navigator. But…"

 

"... I can," Peridot finished; her professional tone waned at that moment. "Right, of course. Peridots are  _the_  technicians of Homeworld, so we have to cover every inch of the planet to perform maintenance. And that includes the Diamond Palaces, which is where we  _should_  find our friends. Alternatively, they could be stuck in a prison power."

 

"You're sure you can find it?" Lapis asked, just to be sure. "I know it's been a while since you were last there, but…"

 

"Sure, but by my estimate, it's been less than three quarters of an Earth's solar orbit," Peridot assured, gradually sounding more like her usual peppy, confident self. "And for you two, it's been that thousands of times over."

 

She frowned a bit upon remembering a small detail. "Of course, it was rare for me to be on Homeworld without my limb enhancers. Those, my touchscreen… they contained a lot of that information. It was designed that way so we would never get lost," Peridot solemnly recalled. "So of  _course_ , Amethyst dumped all of that into the ocean right after they captured me… that's invaluable data that I can't possibly retrieve."

 

As if Bismuth didn't feel bad enough for Peridot already. Era 2 didn't kick off until after Rose had bubbled her, so Bismuth had little to no basis for truly identifying a gem that emerged during that time period; but given Peridot's natural size, she suspected her new little friend to be a very recent Era 2. Bismuth realized her youth was an asset to this mission, as she was the only one comfortable with the modern-day tech that had long replaced the antiquated methods she and Lapis were familiar with.

 

"Aw, forget all that hoo-hah," the blacksmith insisted. "Greg and Lapis here told me what a clever little pebble you've been since you came to us. And the whole time, you had nothing but what you were made with."

 

"You didn't know you could manipulate metal while you lived on Homeworld, right?" Lapis asked, though she knew the answer. She wanted -  _needed_  to remind Peridot that her intellect didn't come from a machine. "I bet when you go back, you won't find a single Peridot who can do that. So forget the stupid limb enhancers; you don't need them. You can still recognize specific places on Homeworld without them with your own memory. Your feelings, your experiences, your routine."

 

Peridot really did need to hear this, because she was already feeling overwhelmed. Knowing for sure now that Steven or any of his friends are in danger, yet not knowing just how well they were right now… that would forever haunt her until she saw those faces again.

 

She was more than driven to give this mission her all, but she was very horrified to see now that Lapis, Bismuth, and Greg made zero progress while waiting for her to reform. No one had a plan for any stage of this mission, but Peridot certainly did.

 

She had  _too many of them._

 

"Right, right," Peridot muttered as she willed herself to stop moping over what was lost. "I certainly had a consistent routine before my mission to Earth… if I see it again, I'm sure it'll all come flooding back. I just spent all this time trying to forget about it... to our detriment. I won't let you down again." It was unclear whom she was referring to, but it was assumed across the board that Peridot was talking about everyone as a collective unit. "By process of elimination, I must be your navigator."

 

"Good! You can guide us right to the Diamonds so I can finally show those upper-crust tyrants what for!" Bismuth declared, bursting with enthusiasm, pride, and an unquenched thirst for vengeance.

 

"Quickest way to handle this is a surprise attack," Lapis advised the blacksmith. "One tsunami… that's all it would take... they'll never see it coming."

 

"What?! Oh, stars,  _no_ ," Peridot couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had to nip this in the bud quick, so she puffed up her chest, hands on her hips as she tried her best to stand her ground on something she could easily be outvoted over.

 

"No, no, no, no  _no_. What exactly do you two think this is?! This is a  _rescue mission_ , not a  _second wave!_  ! We get in, rescue Steven and the others, then  _get out_. That plan is already a suicide mission in its own right, but seriously, think about what you're saying!" Peridot urged, very easily grabbing both Lapis' and Bismuth's attention. "You seriously want to take the fight to the Diamonds? In  _their_  realm? What makes you think you'll even get a  _glimpse_  of the Diamonds before you get shattered by their Homeworld army, which in case you've forgotten,  **outnumber us INFINITY TO ONE!** "

 

Bismuth's eyes bugged out at the outburst. For such a comically diminutive gem of the lowest tier, this Peridot had the fire of an Elite in her. "Whoa."

 

Lapis raised an eyebrow, but otherwise looked unfazed. "Right, but most of them can't fly, right? Getting the drop on them would be  _stupid_  easy."

 

"Oh no, just  _stupid_ ," Peridot shot back, narrowing her eyes. "I suppose I can't blame you since "your" Homeworld is hardly anything like the Homeworld of today, but Lapis…" Lapis saw her hesitate a bit. "I've always seen you do such cool and powerful things; I can't even dream of pulling metal off like you do water. But… Lapis…"

 

"But Lapis  _what?_ "

 

"Homeworld's natural reserves dried up a long time ago; the Homeworld I know only has water processed through machinery… usually as a coolant," Peridot confessed. "At best, I could try bending the metal piping to free up some water that way… and I've heard rumors the Diamonds have their own natural sources exclusively for them. The latter is a death wish. No way, no how you'll get to that water before the Diamonds notice you. And I can tell you with utmost certainty that Homeworld's infrastructure is  _heavily_ layered."

 

The group quietly listened while Peridot struggled to suppress her anger and frustration.

 

"I've been getting better, but it could take me hours just to peel off every layer to expose the core water line," the young gem admitted, looking ashamed. "And even if I did pull this off, it would cause a chain reaction that will compromise the entire facility. Our cover? Blown. If we don't already have Steven and the others before that, we'd might as well shatter ourselves. We'll get surrounded in a matter of seconds."

 

"S-so… so what, you're saying I'm  _useless_  for this mission?" Lapis finally asked, for once looking vulnerable. She understood the implications. She knew Peridot was saying this for her own safety, but that didn't ease the pain of a harsh truth Peridot had just laid upon her. "Is that it?! I might as well stay here?!"

 

"Th-that's not what I'm saying at all!" Peridot's voice cracked; clearly, until now she didn't realize her words still had the power to faze the mighty Lapis.

 

"The point I'm trying to make…." She looked to Bismuth just to make sure she was following along. "… is that you can't come into this doing what you usually do. And yeah, I'm sure you're both eager to take your anger out on Homeworld. Those feelings are fully warranted. There's no love lost between me and Homeworld, either. Just understand that acting on those feelings at this time will accomplish nothing, and you'll be shattered before you can turn around to come back home. Can you guess what the worst thing about this would be…?"

 

Lapis and Bismuth just stared on; neither were inclined to answer, as now they both were second-guessing themselves.

 

"If you shatter before we get everyone home," Peridot warned with a sniff, then squinted her eyes to ward away any oncoming tears. "Someone's going to have to tell him. Someone's going to have to tell Steven Universe that you lost your life, that you were  _shattered_  while coming to save him.  _He's_  the one who agreed to this shady "negotiation",  _he's_  the one who took most of his friends out there to suffer the consequences of an attempt of making peace falling through.  _He_ … is the one who made this call for help."

 

Peridot pointed down at the message in the sand. "We are going to Homeworld because he asked us to. You two… should know what that's going to do to Steven, once he finds out."

 

Peridot didn't need to go any further than that. Lapis covered her eyes in a vain attempt to hide her tears; just picturing what Peridot described felt like those agonizing moments before a gem's body disappeared into thin air and returned to its natural gemstone state. Seeing a traumatized and despondent Steven, much like how she had been for so many years… it was too much. The emotional weight of that consequence… Lapis felt like her gemstone would break in half all over again.

 

While Bismuth didn't have nearly as much time as the others to spend with Steven, the talks they had told Bismuth all she needed to know. On top of that, even though the scenario would be impossible, Bismuth couldn't stop seeing Rose Quartz standing right across from her. For them to fall out the way they did over clashing ideals, for Bismuth to take that first step to redemption after thousands of years thanks to her son, what would Bismuth have to say for herself if her actions made Steven suffer the very fate they had debated so very much on. She gladly would die for the boy, without hesitation.

 

But Peridot's words quickly reminded the war veteran that self-sacrifice was not a matter to take lightly. She fought to protect the ones she loved… but what could she do for them as a lifeless, shattered mass of rainbow pebbles?

 

"While you're thinking about that, also take his paternal unit into account as well," a savage Peridot added, pointing right to a very quiet Greg Universe. He was engrossed in so much of this, but once the topic shifted to how failing this mission would affect Steven, he was making pitiful attempts to clear the tears from his eyes. He gawked at the gems when all eyes turned on him.

 

"Do you want to put him through all that pain when he can't do anything to help his own offspring?!" Peridot shouted to her fellow gems. "Stars forbid we  _really_  screw up our mission, and it's  _Steven_  who's sh-"

 

**"THAT'S ENOUGH!"**

 

That came from Greg, of all people. Peridot froze, terrified. She had never heard Steven's father raise his voice like this. He seemed like such a mellowed out guy…

 

"Peridot, believe me, I'm  _glad_  you're drilling it into their heads that you all need to play it as safe as you possibly can!" the man assured her, though he was still clearly triggered. "But enough's enough! Can't you see?"

 

He gestured to Lapis and Bismuth, whose faces were still covered by their hands as they tried to suppress their crying, but they weren't fooling anyone. Pumpkin cuddled up next to Lapis, whimpering along with her. Meanwhile, Lion came to Bismuth's side to provide support.

 

Peridot felt like such a monster.

 

"I know you mean well," Greg told her, trying his best  _not_  to make her feel like the worst gem ever. "But you made your point. You let me worry about… those other things, okay? It's what dads do."

 

Peridot really wanted to cry along with the other gems, but internally she convinced herself to resist it. Her logic dictated that this would accomplish absolutely nothing. In fact, Peridot realized she was doing exactly the opposite of what she wanted to do: waste time.

 

It was important to set everyone's priorities straight to they'd all be on the same page, but they hadn't even gotten started on finding or building a ship worthy of making a trip across the galaxy. Peridot needed to decide which plan to go with, and stick with it.

 

"I'm sorry," she muttered to Greg before quietly approaching Lapis and Bismuth, who had calmed down significantly. She grumbled to herself briefly before deciding how to smooth things over.

 

"Look, you two… I didn't mean to make you think about that kind of stuff," Peridot started off in a soft tone. "I know I sound like  _Pearl_  right now, but…  _gah!_ "

 

She wished so badly she still had that tape recorder. That would have made everything so much easier. "W-we seriously can't spare the time even entertaining fantasies like that, okay? I know this  _feels_  like the perfect opportunity to get revenge for what Homeworld has done to you, to all of us… but it just  _isn't_. Let's do the mission that was assigned to us, okay?"

 

"I… I went too far," Lapis admitted, sounding awkward and unsure of herself. "Part of me was just kidding at the start, to be honest… it got out of hand, but you… I've got no doubts about you now, Peridot."

 

Peridot could only stare at Lapis as if she was an entirely new species she just discovered on this planet. "Er… huh?"

 

"You didn't guess we had a chat about some of this stuff before you reformed?" Bismuth asked her with a light chuckle. "We did get carried away this time, but you definitely dug deeper into us than I thought you could!"

 

Now Peridot just looked tired and annoyed. "Did you two seriously just put me through a  _test?_ "

 

"Maybe you could call it that," Lapis said in a knowing, cryptic tone. Her tears dried, and she felt so relieved. "When I reformed, I felt helpless. I had no ideas to offer; no real plan. In all honesty, I really don't even want to participate in this mission. I wanted to be  _done_  with Homeworld. We all agreed that in order for this operation to work, we would need a leader."

 

Peridot felt her pupils shrink; she couldn't believe it. She was  _just about_  to knock sense into the two to talk about a team leader… of course they stole her thunder  _again._

 

"Nothing I said was enough to convince Lapis to stay," Bismuth explained.

 

"For… various reasons," Lapis added. For just a fleeting moment, she looked  _furious_ , genuinely so, before nodding to Bismuth to continue.

 

"Yes, but the point is I couldn't get through to her," Bismuth continued, shrugging off the flicker of fury. Either that, or she didn't notice. Peridot definitely did; it sent a chill that coursed throughout her body.

 

"Not even  _my_  moving speech about Steven could sway her. I have to admit, if you need a field commander, there's no one better for the task than me. But this kind of thing… I just didn't have it in me. That was Rose's expertise. What I  _could_ do was convince her to stay here until you reformed. She told me if  _you_  could make her reconsider, she'd cast her woes aside and join us. And maybe it's just me, Tiny, but I think you just succeeded where I failed."

 

"Wait, what?  _WHAT?!_ " Peridot really was being tested without knowing it. Her ran her fingers through her hair, frazzling it. It felt like her head was splitting open. Of course, all she was doing was giving herself split ends. She whipped around to face Lapis, who looked way to casual and serene to be real.

 

" _Lapis!_  You didn't say anything about wanting to back out! Y-you weren't even hesitating!" Peridot pointed out, desperate to find some hole in Bismuth's testimony. "Tell me she's making that up!"

 

"I stopped hesitating when I saw you not hesitate even once," Lapis responded. "You always talked about how Homeworld was hunting you down because you directly disobeyed Yellow Diamond and called her a clod. I could see back then, the whole idea of returning to Homeworld now, after everything that happened… you'd rather be shattered on the spot. That's close enough to how I feel on the matter."

 

Peridot just quietly nodded. Internally, she felt so powerful all of a sudden.

 

"But the second you heard that Steven was in trouble… at first, I thought you somehow overlooked or it slipped your mind that we would be returning to Homeworld to do this. But… clearly, that's not the case," Lapis humbly acknowledged. "You were worried about  _how_  to get there; never the fact that we were going there at all. It was secondary to you, your biggest fear… I didn't think it was possible for you to shove that aside so quickly."

 

While genuinely moved by Lapis' words, while trying her best not to choke up and let her friend finish, Peridot added with a squeak, "Y-yeah! Uh-huh, that's… that's the primary phobia! How on  _Earth_  could it be anything else…?"

 

Lapis smiled. It was hilarious to her, really, that Peridot could be so transparent at times. "Exactly. Sometimes, when we were together with the other Crystal Gems, it was like you were as close to being a human being that a gem possibly can. You really do put your heart into everything. I know I said you sucked as Garnet back when you, me and Connie were being Crystal Temps, but Peridot… believe me when I say you would make a fantastic leader one day."

 

It meant so much to hear those words. Peridot never expected them to come out of Lapis for sure. She tearfully nodded, acknowledging her former roommate's words before speaking up; Peridot thought she'd somehow lost her voice for a moment. "S-so that's it, huh… you all really wanted me to be the leader that badly…?"

 

"At this point, you gotta be!" Bismuth affirmed with a thumbs up. "Put me as head of this operation, and I guarantee we'll end up real quick in some risky Bismuth!"

 

Greg got the wordplay immediately and started cracking up. Peridot paused for a moment, as that sounded so familiar to her… oh right, it was a movie she watched. "I get it!" she cried out as she joined with Greg and Bismuth in the hearty laughter.

 

Lapis was not impressed. Whether or not she got the joke, it just bounced off of whatever shield she had. She crossed her arms, letting out a huff that loosened up a lock of her hair.

 

"Well, I'd vote for you, Peridot!" Greg added in once they got all their laughs out of their systems.

 

Peridot's lip quivered, as it had so many times already since she reformed. "I'm just used to there being some resistance when I offer to lead…"

 

Her jovial tone wore off as the words sunk in. It wasn't some kind of elaborate joke now. She was elected to be their leader because these three individuals believed in her. The feeling reminded her of how she always believed in Steven, and always would. Now his hopes and prayers were in Peridot's hands. It was her responsibility to make sure he didn't make a grave mistake by passing his will on to them.

 

It would take some insane level of planning to make this rescue a success… luckily, the Crystal Gem who did it best was on the case. Absolutely everything to the smallest detail needed to be perfect, she believed. The slightest miscalculation or logical misstep could end them all on the spot.

 

"We really needed this morale boost," Peridot acknowledged, looking to the others. "And for that, I thank all three of you. But it's time to get to work."

 

"Mission layout's simple enough, right?" Bismuth asked. "Find a vehicle to get to Homeworld, get  _all_  our friends outta there, and get back home all in one piece." She paused for a brief moment. "So, if we're gonna do this causing no ruckus at all if we can help it, what do you propose I do, Peri?"

 

"Simple: You will help me grab any scrap we can make use of from the Diamonds' crashed ships, I will give you the specs for a ship of our own, and you will build accordingly. Once we're in Phase 2, you'll suffice as the muscle of our group. I'm almost certain there will be obstacles that require brute force to bypass. Most importantly, self-defense. I'd be very surprised if we really could rescue Steven and the others right from under the Diamonds' noses, to be perfectly honest. So of course, we'll resort to self-defense if necessary. I have the utmost confidence that you will protect us for this mission, Bismuth." It was fairly easy for Peridot to picture the range of utility the blacksmith would have for their mission, but she was no less proud of herself when Bismuth was visibly on board with these proposals and had nary a rebuttal for any of these points.

 

"Now that's what I like to hear!" Bismuth grinned at her boss before looking down at her work bench. "Gotta admit, I've never made a spaceship before. But heck, if I can make spires, armor, shields, and every kind of weapon under the sun, why not? I  _love_  a good challenge."

 

With Bismuth satisfied, clear goals set ahead for her, Lapis quietly stepped forth to take her place.

 

"So, what's up, Dot?" Lapis inquired; her tone dry. "Before the drama bomb, you were in the middle of telling me how my powers are nigh-on useless on today's Homeworld. You're not thinking of bumping me down to team mascot, are you?"

 

Just like that, Peridot's composure dropped as she puffed up her cheeks and growled right at Lapis. But Lapis just smirked; it was obviously the flustered whiny child kind of growl she was used to hearing from her former roommate, current… "superior."

 

"Why you-!" But instead of exploding in a hyperactive rage like before, she just turned her nose up at Lapis, crossing her arms while trying her hardest to look  _so_  cool and sassy-but-classy.

 

"Pumpkin has and always will be this team's mascot!" Peridot declared. "You dare commit sacrilege on this fledgling team by supplanting our lovable team mascot with y _ou?!_ For shame!"

 

"What can I say? I'm a born rebel," Lapis answered. She rolled her eyes, then leaned over with her business face on. "You  _do_  have a reason for me being here, right?"

 

"Oh, without a doubt!" Peridot quickly answered; she did admittedly feel awkward that she was in the middle of berating her friend before she found out it was all a test. "I'll run you through what I've got in mind. While we're still here, you'll be essential to making sure we get our ship made as quickly as possible. It's a collaborative effort; Bismuth builds it, I design and oversee the project, and you will be speeding up the process."

 

Lapis didn't quite follow. "Right. So… how am I making this faster for you?"

 

"Bismuth told me she's got her own workshop. It's called 'The Forge'." Peridot couldn't help but use air quotes to emphasize the name. "Real original, right?"

 

Already, Lapis felt herself getting bored. This was not lost on Peridot, who made the effort to discipline herself better. She was supposed to be serious now, wasn't she?

 

"A-anyway, it's right underneath a volcano, I think she said. She siphons the magma straight from their chambers and uses that to forge her weapons! She's quite productive, mostly due in part to the fact that she usually gets to skip the cooling process since heat of that magnitude doesn't affect her at all."

 

"She can just  _touch_  it like that without burning her hand off?" Lapis looked a bit disturbed just thinking about it. Then again, it made sense. Being trapped underground surrounded by magma must be a Lapis Lazuli's worst nightmare. Or so Peridot assumed.

 

"She  _bathes_  in the stuff and claims it's like a lukewarm shower," Peridot informed her. "That's well and good for her, but the rest of us can't handle that kind of heat. She'll have to adjust to letting the ship parts cool down; otherwise she's assembling the entire ship herself, and given that she just admitted to never building one before, I believe it's pertinent that we oversee her work before jetting off into the vacuum of space wouldn't you agree?"

 

"I get it," Lapis nodded, her smile finally returning. "We're right next to the ocean; she can mass-produce these parts I'll cool them all at once with a big wave."

 

"Ah, you'll need more than one wave," Peridot cut in. "It'll turn into a big ball of steam in a matter of seconds. Definitely don't touch the parts until steam stops coming out. I'd also avoid the steam whenever possible. I think you'll find this task to be much more challenging than how I'm making it out to be."

 

Gradually, Lapis was becoming impressed with how Peridot conducted herself. Part of her wished she had been there to witness how Peridot and Steven saved the world from the Cluster, or when she landed the final blow on Jasper.

 

Of course, the blue-hued gem held no illusions of Peridot changing permanently. But the way she stepped up to take this role, despite her quirks and attitude still slipping in here and there… at least she knew when it was time to get serious and stay serious. If her appearance was concealed, Lapis never would have guessed it was a Peridot putting her in her place earlier.

 

"That'll make it interesting, I guess," Lapis conceded. "Maybe if I make the water really cold… it should cool down much more quickly."

 

"Might wanna double-check with Bismuth on that," Peridot advised. "I mean, you're not wrong, but from a purely scientific standpoint, I've known some metals become brittle if they freeze quickly. But I'm not the antiquated weapons specialist here, so I advise you seek a second opinion."

 

"I'll be sure to double-check," Lapis assured her. "So… about the lack of water on Homeworld…"

 

Peridot nodded. "Relatively simple solution: we bring our own water. You know, I've seen kids on Earth during the summer with these garish plastic toys that sort of look like weapons, only they fire water instead of incendiary rounds or lasers. They just… all fire at each other indiscriminately; the objective eludes me. Relevant to your situation, I saw one particular boy with a different type of water-spitting weapon. It looked like a heavier faux firearm; probably not fun to carry, but the payoff is that it fires off a  _much_  bigger stream of water. I noticed a difference in the duration of his water spraying and virtually no pauses to reload. In a matter of a few Earth minutes, that kid was the lone dry survivor; everyone else was completely over-saturated!"

 

Peridot very nearly let out a wicked laugh, because that was the one time she enjoyed watching human children engage in water-based combat, but she could see Lapis was waiting for her to get to the point.

 

"-So, how did that kid make a vague competition so one-sided, you might wonder," she continued in haste, desperate not to show Lapis her growing inner nervousness from assuming this promotion. "Well, I noticed his weaponry was attached to something on the kid's back. I later identified it as a container that held much more water than those piddly little chambers the other kid clods brought on their weapons. Now, I'm not suggesting you use something like  _that_ , Lapis! Give me a little credit, now…"

 

"That look on your face says you really want to see me use one," Lapis accused; she sounded so sure about that, as if this wasn't the first time Peridot tried to rope her into doing something stupid after making it sound so amazing all day.

 

At that point, it seemed even Peridot knew trying to lie her way out of it would be a waste of time, so she simply laughed it off for a quick second before shifting the subject a bit.

 

"I sort of envisioned you flying around using something like that to store water when we're on Homeworld," she said. Lapis felt like that took an eternity to get to the point. "Easy access, it can hold a lot, and it shouldn't be a burden to carry."

 

Lapis paused to consider the option. "It's not a bad idea in concept, though I'd prefer something that doesn't weigh me down too much. I'll try some things out."

 

"Hm…" Peridot nodded in agreement, yet there was still something else on her mind. "Maybe I should have brought this up sooner: Lapis, if you have a finite amount of water to work with, how much would you need to adequately fight? How diligent would you be in reusing a fixed amount of water at any given time, while wasting as little fluid as you can? How much of it can you carry at all times without it adversely affecting your combat or flight abilities?"

 

For a few moments, Lapis was silent, staring at her leader like she was some puzzle rigged to be impossible to figure out. Finally, she replied, "You really should have opened up with those questions, Peridot."

 

"Eheh… I'm still learning?" was all Peridot could offer as an excuse.

 

Lapis turned to leave; she was finally satisfied with Peridot's answers. "I guess you're not doing too bad for a first day," she offered as some sort of compliment. "You've had a lot thrown at you in a short amount of time, Peridot. You're sure you're really okay with leading the rescue effort?"

 

Just by being reminded that all of this was for the sake of a rescue mission, Peridot looked more emboldened than ever before. She cast her eyes to the sand, hands forming into shaking fists.

 

_"I won't let you down, Steven…"_

 

"What was that?" asked Lapis, who had taken a few steps further away in preparation to fly off and begin her training. "Peridot…?"

 

"Hm? Huh?" Peridot tried her best not to look exhausted, but as usual, she fooled no one. The sun had set over the horizon. It felt like just a second ago the sun was still up for her…

 

"Oh! It's nothing, Lapis! I  _totally swear_  I'm not gonna fall asleep or anything!" She forced out a laugh, as if that would throw off the scent. "Because then I'd be like you, wouldn't I?"

 

Lapis considered prodding further, but decided against it. She got the answers she needed to prepare for a fight for her friends stuck on Homeworld; now she had no excuse to kill time. "Their house is vacant now; did you realize that? Maybe you can steal another gem's bedroom for the night."

 

Lapis smirked to herself, and just before flying off without looking back, she made sure to make her words be heard loud and clear by her diminutive friend. "But knowing you, you'd be too freaked out to go through with it, right?"

 

With that, she took off into the air and smirked when she heard the disbelieving screeches of rage below her.

 

"Everything okay over there, Peridot?"

 

The diminutive gem froze and went dead silent, only to relax when she turned to see Steven's father. "Oh, it's just you. I'm… surprised you haven't left yet."

 

"I just can't bring myself to this time," Greg confessed. "Usually I'm good about keeping myself out of Steven's gem business, but this… it's different, you know?"

 

"Tell me about it," Peridot dully agreed, staggering a little, but ultimately caught herself before she fell.

 

Greg noticed her falter a bit, then gestured over to where he had made a fire a bit further up the beach. "C'mon, kiddo. You've had a lot on your plate today; a rest by the fire will do you good."

 

"I didn't eat anything today…" Peridot weakly rebutted, but had no qualms about joining Greg by the fire.

 

Greg just chuckled; he should have figured that was one Earth expression she hadn't come across yet. "What a day it's been for you, huh? Wedding, big epic battle…"

 

Unlike him, for Peridot it still felt like no time had passed since the post-battle wedding; as if it hadn't been the better part of a day since then.

 

"Poof, official Crystal Gem status is official  _again_ , Steven's gone, now I'm a leader."

 

"Exactly," said Greg. "I got a feeling you'll look back on this years down the line and think better of it then. This could be the start of something bigger for you."

 

"Feelings don't foretell the future," Peridot muttered. She came off as a real stick in the mud whenever she got this tired. Truth be told, Peridot couldn't remember the last time she exhausted herself to this extent.

 

Then again, she never made this much of an effort to contain her compulsive need to enjoy her free life on Earth until today. It took sheer strength and willpower to tone herself down and not go on a complete power trip now that she had officially become an authority figure.

 

For all the times she falsely claimed to be the leader of the Crystal Gems, Peridot never believed she could really become one. Her kind was never meant to stand above anybody and never climb the ranks to achieve greatness. By default, Cut-5XG had declared herself the greatest Peridot that had ever lived. That was one boast Peridot could always make without being challenged for it. Now that she really thought about it, it wasn't that much of a meaningful achievement.

 

"Maybe not," Greg considered as he took out a cup and a thermos. "But I'm pretty confident you'll feel a lot better in the near future if you take my offer of some hot cocoa."

 

Sure enough, Peridot found herself being offered a beverage before she had time to process the man had pouring the cup for her a few seconds ago. She accepted it without hesitation and took her time to sip it down. "Wow, thanks… I like it."

 

Greg nodded. "You look like you're perking up already." He turned his head and took notice to Lion suddenly appearing and settling into the gap between him and the lone remaining gem in the area. "Oh, hey, Lion. You're tuckered out too, huh?"

 

Similarly, Peridot felt something tapping her side, but paid it no mind. But suddenly, Peridot's arm shot forward on reflex as Pumpkin startled her by jumping on her lap.

 

"Y-yikes!" She had just barely managed to keep a couple of fingers on her cup to keep it from spilling. Luckily for Peridot, she was close to finishing her drink, anyway. "Oh,  _Pumpkin!_ " She immediately sat her cup down firmly on the sand before devoting attention to her neglected pet. "I'm so sorry! How long have I been ignoring you today?!" Given the way it all played out, it was safe to say Pumpkin felt pretty left out for most of it.

 

She hugged Pumpkin, but continued to feel pangs of guilt somewhere in her body. "Aw, you're so freezing cold!" She sniffled when she felt Pumpkin still shivering even in her embrace. "H-hey, I'm sorry! How many times are you gonna make me say that today, and  _why aren't you warming up?!_ "

 

Peridot grumbled, then took notice to the cup she put down just a minute ago. "Oh, I get it now." She picked it up and dangled it in front of Pumpkin's face. The sentient winter squash yapped at the sight of the cup. "Emotional blackmail, is it?! You're gonna guilt-trip me until I give you the rest of this. You seriously didn't think I'd catch on? I am a  _genius!_ "

 

Ultimately, she sighed and fed Pumpkin the rest of her hot chocolate. That seemed to satisfy her pet, though she didn't get much warmer even from that. "Oh, for the love of-" She looked to her left and noticed Lion's presence for the first time. Now she understood what Pumpkin wanted.

 

"Hey, Lion?" Relief fell upon her when Lion opened an eye and looked up to the gem addressing him. "H-hey, hi," we offered and awkward wave before picking Pumpkin up off her lap. "Do you mind…?"

 

This must not have been the first time this happened; Lion quickly consented in the form of a snort. Peridot carefully set Pumpkin over Lion's mane; the little creature automatically made itself comfortable on a spot and quickly went to sleep. Lion himself drifted right back off to dreamland himself. "We appreciate it," Peridot quietly thanked Lion before looking up at the night sky before she let out a sigh. Seeing something at the corner of her eye, again to the left, she turned and jumped out of her seat for a split second before fumbling around to calm back down.

 

It was just Greg, offering his thermos for a hot cocoa refill. Peridot couldn't refuse; she didn't know why or how, but the human told the truth when he said it would perk her up. Although she still must have been a little dazed to so quickly forget his presence the moment Pumpkin jumped in her lap, Peridot couldn't deny she was in a much better place now; much more at peace.

 

While she sipped down her second serving of cocoa, the bright powder pink of Lion's mane drew her attention a bit. This time, it served as a reminder of why she sat here; why she was too scatterbrained to think straight for long, even by her own standards. She looked to the stars, trying to hide her bitter annoyance to Greg. "This is so unfair."

 

"Hm? Everything okay?" Unlike the gems, Greg was content letting Peridot talk only when she wanted to. He knew it was important to give her some degree of comfort during down time; some space especially, since she'd have to answer to everybody at all times once they were ready to leave Earth.

 

"Uh, sorry…" Peridot wasn't sure what she just apologized for, but she shook her head and decided there was no harm in being honest with Greg. Perhaps the real reason fate brought him together with this specific trio of gems was to give a way to offer Peridot a bit of therapy.

 

"It just hit me how much of a tease it is that Lion is here," she grumbled. "Did you know he's capable of reaching the  _Moon_  from here in a matter of seconds? I was along for that ride."

 

Greg was taken aback by this. "Geez, I don't think Steven ever told me he did. Aw, man… did he really go to the Moon without ever telling me?"

 

"It was his first trip. I was there… we needed coordinates for the Cluster." Thinking back on it, Peridot realized how insensitive she had been to all of them that trip. Her shallow, misguided adoration for Yellow Diamond was painful to relive. It was hard to live down recounting the enthusiasm in her voice when she first saw what the Earth  _could_  have been, so oblivious back then as to how anyone could have considered that project a bad thing.

 

Really, the only interesting thing Peridot could glean from that memory was her equally insensitive criticism of Rose Quartz's methods. Her words hurt and angered each and every Crystal Gem, Steven included. But it was almost humorous in hindsight, since everyone else in Peridot's life had recently been making a big deal about Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond being one and the same.

 

Peridot could hardly believe back when she was first told about the wedding that it all started by Garnet (still the  _cool_  one of the group in her eyes) taking that news so badly that it destabilized and broke her fusion. Back when she gave Rose a very sarcastic thank-you for dooming the planet, and even when she told Steven right to his face that his mother's actions really didn't save the world at all in the long run… she wasn't wrong. With Rose's deception exposed, by comparison Peridot came out of that smelling like roses in hindsight.

 

"Ah, I think I got it. You know Lion can take you all the way to the Moon that fast, and it's hard not to wanna think he could be taking you to Homeworld right now." Turns out Greg wasn't wrong, either.

 

"I-… I know there's a slim-to-nil chance of that actually happening," Peridot was quick to make that clear. "Lion really exhausted himself taking us to the Moon. That distance is shorter than a  _stupid_ grain of sand compared to the distance between Earth and Homeworld! So of course I'm not taking a risk like that. Believe me, there are so many quicker alternatives we could be taking right now if they weren't  _all_ smashed to bits."

 

Oh, those were the days. Back when the Crystal Gems routinely trashed everything Peridot had to her name.

 

"Well, try and focus instead how much of a good thing it is that Lion's with us," Greg urged. "We forgot to tell you it's because of Lion that Steven's message reached us at all. I'll spare you the details, but I guess one way to put it is… well, Lion was the bottle carrying Steven's message as it traveled across the ocean." It actually seemed like an apt metaphor in Greg's mind considering how the message was actually received, but…

 

"Don't tell me that's actually a thing here!" Peridot took it literally, of course. "There's no way that's a legit mode of communication!"

 

"Uh, think of it more like a fictional media thing, or a myth!" Greg quickly assured her. "A-anyway, we all owe Lion for letting us receive the mission. Maybe he'll come in handy on Homeworld."

 

Peridot snapped her fingers, like a light bulb just illuminated inside her head. "Of  _course!_  Why didn't I think of that before?! If we can get Lion to Homeworld, all we need to do is land in a secluded place, then just tell Lion to take us to Steven! I could skip  _all_  of that elaborate subterfuge I've been planning out in my head!"

 

She turned to smile genuinely at Greg. "Wow, I'm glad I decided to draft you into my team! Who would've thought the best ideas we have to succeed here are coming from the token human of my crew?"

 

"Oh, so you  _are_  taking me along," Greg realized, both happy to have contributed genuine safer alternatives for the mission and nervous that the ambiguity of his involvement in this rescue effort was no longer there.

 

The young gem wasn't sure how to make of this reaction. "I was under the impression you wanted to join the mission earlier today. Was I mistaken?"

 

"A-actually, not at all," Greg explained. "There's some info I'd like to share that could help the mission, but I'd prefer to wait until everybody meets up here again. Do you know when they're coming back?"

 

"Bismuth…" Peridot winced, remembering she had made a folly. "Crud. I said I'd help her collect scrap from those Diamond ships. If I had to guess, she's already starting to prep some building material at her little "Forge". I still need to decide what model to give her guidelines for, or else we risk missing out on a day's worth of work."

 

Greg simply nodded. "And what about Lapis?"

 

" _Urgh_ , I should've made her give me an ETA before she flew off," Peridot's sense of peace began to boil away. She was still making mistakes at every juncture. "I told her to hone her water skills so she'll have an idea of how much of a fixed amount of water we'll need to bring with us on the ship."

 

She just realized she skipped an integral part of the explanation that would make this far easier for Steven's father to understand. "Oh, right. My proposal for Lapis coping with the lack of usable water to fight with was to bring some of our own. But you've seen the kinds of things Lapis likes to make with her power, right?"

 

"Ohhh yeah," Greg groaned, remembering the size of the giant water arm that inadvertently cost him a boat. "You could fill three public pools with that much water."

 

"It goes without saying she will need to downsize and revise her strategy. The longer we stay here on Earth, the more I'm going to worry about everyone. There's still so much I need to consider as far as possible roadblocks go!" Peridot lamented. "Honestly, I have a hard time believing Steven entrusted his fate to us without taking into account that he could be putting his life in  _my_  hands! I never gave him a single reason to believe I work well under pressure… there's no way he would have wanted me in control of this operation!"

 

All too familiar words, Greg noticed. He was more than glad to offer his input. "Just a second, there. Steven and me; we've always been in tune. There are some things that even the Crystal Gems can't give Steven advice on… usually guy stuff and human stuff. And if he was ever worried or curious about the Crystal Gems but wasn't ready to talk to them in person, then he could always turn to me."

 

That was something Greg could always be proud of, and why he'd never think he would ever become irrelevant in Steven's life.

 

"And believe it or not, especially back when you were still new to Earth, Steven liked talking to me about you a lot. That was back when the others didn't really trust you yet; I was a valuable neutral party back in those days."

 

Peridot raised an eyebrow at that statement. "Neutral party? Wasn't your first impression of me that time I shoved you off the barn roof?"

 

Greg laughed out loud as he remembered that moment. The petite gem couldn't fathom how that was funny. Well, for her it was kind of funny. But had Garnet not been there to make the save, she was certain their first "meeting" would be devoid of any humor.

 

"Ah, that's all in the past," Greg more than happily assured. "Garnet vouched for you, and thinking back on it like that, it's just, y'know, funny. When I think about experiments, usually I think about some really creepy lab tests with a mass of dudes in white coats talking all weird. Pushing me off a roof just to see if I could fly? That's Sitcom 101!"

 

"Hm…" Peridot was following along, but she didn't know where Greg intended to go with this. At least she knew what sitcoms were now - and based on what she could recollect of the few series she did catch glimpses of, she could see the analogy.

 

"But seriously, when it comes to being given a chance to lead the team, I'd think Steven would be one of your biggest advocates, Peridot."

 

"Completely illogical," Peridot refuted. "On what basis do you found that thought of yours on?"

 

"You'd be surprised, but a lot of what you've been saying tonight, and the way you've been handling everything… I see a lot of him in you." That was certainly something Peridot never thought she'd hear from anyone. "Still so young - by gem standards, anyway - and I bet Homeworld is the last place you want to be right now…"

 

Peridot sighed; her gaze fixed up towards the sky. She appeared to be looking for something up there. "Yeah, doesn't that figure. I did everything I could to find a way off this planet once I got stranded here, and I was desperate enough to kidnap your offspring as a last resort. So I gave up on it, and once I'm finally comfortable living life as an  _earthling_ , now… this."

 

It was obvious these ironic twists had been grating on Peridot since she learned about the stakes of this mission.

 

"But if it's really gotten you shaken up, you could've fooled me," Greg pointed out. "The rest of us didn't have a clue where to even start; you've been handing out plans for everybody right away. You've assigned a big job to everybody to prepare for this while the ship gets built. Between Bismuth wanting to blow up everything and everyone in her path to get to Steven, and just getting Lapis to agree to come along at all… do you really think Steven wouldn't want you to guide us?"

 

When he put it like that, Peridot couldn't think of a real counter-argument. "I suppose I see where you are coming from," she conceded. "Though that reminds me… I haven't really given you a task yet."

 

"I was just waiting until you were ready to tell me," Greg assured her. "I'm not gonna pressure you. Besides, I know I'm kind of limited in what I can do for you guys. I know I'll still be a liability more than anything."

 

" _N-no!_ Don't ever think that!" Peridot suddenly begged. She sounded so desperate to make Greg see he was integral as any of the other team members. "Really, even if you didn't want to come with us, I'd still make you."

 

Greg was glad he already consented of his own free will, because that statement concerned him. "You need me with you guys that badly?"

 

"I'm sure you've noticed there isn't much in the way of team synergy like there is with Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl," the newly-anointed leader pointed out. "You seemed like a pretty good mediator earlier. But you're not wrong about your limitations: even though you're coming along, I don't plan on you leaving the ship once we land on Homeworld. I guess the appropriate title for your role in this team is  _Chauffeur_."

 

"Ah, like the people who drive limos for rich people," Greg understood… sort of. "I don't mind, but I haven't exactly got a pilot's license…"

 

"Irrelevant," Peridot declared. "For most of the trip, we'll be on auto-pilot anyway. The basics will be easy for you to learn. I know it's not exactly a glamorous role for the mission we're undertaking, but you're going to be crucial for our escape."

 

"How do you figure?"

 

The pensive Peridot chose her next words carefully. "I'm bringing you along because we're so short-handed with abilities that don't exactly gel that well for a cohesive rescue effort. It would be  _the worst_  if we all made it back to the ship before getting captured, but fail to escape because our getaway vehicle was not prepared ahead of time. It's also crucial to have someone guarding the ship at all times after we disembark. If anyone finds our ship, it's highly likely they'll commandeer it."

 

She noticed Greg looked more and more fearful of this possibilities the longer she went on; he definitely needed some positive reinforcement.

 

"Listen: I'm very well aware how limited you humans are. But if you can just keep the enemy locked out, you won't have to fight at all. I can give you a few easy-to-use tools so that you can better defend yourself in a worst-case scenario." Peridot sighed as she looked down at the sleeping Pumpkin nuzzled into Lion's mane. "Against my better judgment, I've decided Pumpkin is coming, too."

 

"Are you for real?! It's crazy enough that I'm coming along!"

 

Peridot looked to Greg; her focused, unflinching eyes told the musician she was being real with him indeed. "Two simple reasons… and you sort of fall into that category, too. Once we depart for Homeworld, we're leaving Earth completely undefended. We're the only ones left in this group, and I can't afford to leave Pumpkin all alone. I've projected that this will be a relatively short mission, but there's always a chance something will delay us. And… I don't want her to think I've abandoned her."

 

"I-… I mean, I  _get_  it, but what's that got to do with-"

 

"I hate to give you more reason to be terrified of what we're doing, but the odds of our mission succeeding? It's slim. Slim in that it will be a true miracle if this plan goes through completely unhindered." Peridot hated having to talk about this, but the realist in her didn't want to delude her teammates into thinking this task would be anything less than nigh-on impossible that will require 100% of their efforts to succeed.

 

"It's safe to assume we'll be shattered when we're caught. And if it comes to that…  _ooh_ , I'm such a selfish clod for saying this, but…!" She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. "If we all fail… and we're all sentenced to execution, and there's nothing we can do to get out of it… I… I kind of want all of us to be together when that happens."

 

Greg was stunned to hear this.

 

"I guess it's okay if you hate me for saying this, but… I want us all together in our last moments. So the last thing we'll ever think and feel is how much of an honor it was to be part of this team… part of this family."

 

A couple of minutes of silence followed this. Peridot kept her eyes glued to the fire, as she was certain Greg was only looking at her with disgust.

 

"Oh, and I forgot…" Peridot muttered; she really didn't feel comfortable talking again after such a morbid confession, but it felt like a detail Greg should be aware of. "For non-sentimental purposes, Pumpkin can guard you with the ship. I know it's not much, but I guarantee if she has the element of surprise, no one on Homeworld will know what she is or how to deal with her, and you can use their confusion as an opening to dispatch the enemy."

 

The last thing Peridot expected to get was a hug, but somehow, she got it. Though confused and flustered, she didn't resist it or try to escape. This was the opposite reaction she expected out of Greg. " _Gyah!_ What in the-?!"

 

"You really are a gem after my son's heart, you know that?!" Greg sounded oddly ecstatic and possibly on the verge of tears. "Peridot, don't you dare think you're not up for this job ever again! You are, beyond a doubt, the heart of this team!"

 

Oddly enough, Peridot's sentiments seemed to be felt by both Bismuth and Lapis. Both paused their work and felt a comforting warmth that felt similar to a human beating heart, before the feeling dissipated moments later. Each Crystal Gem smiled, and though they weren't entirely sure what brought about such a sensation, they knew there was only one individual on this planet that held such empathetic intensity. Projecting feelings that strong from a distance, though… Lapis and Bismuth did find that highly unusual given the natural limitations of their leader. But that only inspired them to work even harder.

 

"The heart…" Peridot quietly echoed. "Y-you can't be serious; I'm nowhere  _near_  the kind of heart that Steven is. Since we know he's a Diamond hybrid now… I guess a lot of his more… er, esoteric abilities make sense in hindsight. B-but that's all the more reason why it's inappropriate and inaccurate to claim my limited abilities come anywhere  _near_  Steven's!"

 

"Aw, and here I thought you'd be the one gem who wouldn't go on about Rose like everyone else has," Greg mumbled, a bit downtrodden.

 

"Don't be mistaken, Sir Greg Paternal Unit Universe!"

 

"–just call me Greg."

 

"Wh-whatever!" Peridot still didn't fight the hug, but she felt her fingers fidgeting again, as they often did when she was in shock. "I couldn't care less about the whole Rose-Diamond-Pink thing! This is purely about Steven - I can't even imagine what else he's been able to do since he left!"

 

"Well…" Greg stared up at the sky. "It sure didn't stop him from getting into trouble up there, you know. I doubt he would've sent the SOS if these "diamond" powers were doing anything to help.

 

"I-it's the principle of the thing," Peridot tried to rationalize. "Diamonds are at the very top of the gem hierarchy. B-but Peridots, especially Era 2s like me… we're at rock bottom. We emerge as technicians, and stay that way until the day we shatter. We're never meant to climb the ranks or become anything memorable. A Diamond's power has no limit; I barely have any to speak of."

 

"Hm…" Greg released his hold on Peridot, who sat back down looking extremely conflicted and confused. "I'll throw a hypothetical at you: if  _Steven_  told you that you had no limit to your potential, and he really believed you could be on par with the Diamonds one day, how would you react?"

 

Peridot quietly growled as she pictured the scenario in her head. She really could picture Steven doing exactly what Greg described.

 

"I would call him the biggest clod that ever existed," she said with bitter certainty. "I'd throw Steven's stuff at him, just to get him to shut up. His bubble would deflect that eventually. Then the little twerp would start hugging me, saying all these sickeningly nice things to win me over… I'd break out of the hold and try to distance myself as far as I can, but I'd give up on that before even leaving the room. Because then I'd remember…"

 

Greg smiled, clearly endeared to this hypothetical story.

 

"I can't get myself to stop believing in him," Peridot confessed. "The first time I trusted him, that was the point of no return. If I can't believe in myself when he clearly believes in me… it feels like I'm insulting him. I can't do that to Steven… so I'm not going to fight it. If he believes in me, I'll vicariously believe in myself through him. Even if I don't agree… but right now, lacking confidence is the last thing this team needs."

 

Peridot seemed to regain her strength and resolve towards the end of her statement. "If we're going to rescue Steven and the rest, we need to be confident so we'll be able to perform the tasks assigned to us flawlessly."

 

"Sorry if it sounds like I'm prodding, but I've noticed every time you nearly went off the deep end today, you sobered up in an instant when you were reminded of something," Greg said with a hint of caution in his voice.

 

"The mission," Peridot immediately realized.

 

"But it's more than the fact that it's just a mission and you were chosen to lead the charge, right?"

 

"Steven gave us this mission," the youthful gem recalled. "His life is in my hands… I can't let him down. I  _won't_  let him down…"

 

Greg stood up from where he sat; the fire was beginning to die out. "And you won't. None of us will," he assured his tiny superior.

 

"Good talk, Peridot. I'm glad I helped you out with your plans. Just remember you can always come and talk to me any time when you're feeling down." He let out a yawn just then. "I think I'll turn in for the night. I'll make sure to get a week's worth of food tomorrow for the journey, okay?"

 

"Fantastic idea," Peridot affirmed. She also got to her feet. "I thank you for your invaluable input, uh…  _Greg_ ," she cringed as she said that name out loud. "Augh, that is so dull."

 

She looked sternly to the adult man towering over her and pointed to his face. "I  _must_  nickname you, Paternal Unit Universe. I will make a note of that right now and be sure to have a better name for you the next time we have a conversation by a fire."

 

Greg laughed as Peridot brought out her tablet, making a digital sticky note attached to her desktop to serve as a reminder.

 

"Hey, just a suggestion, but maybe you should get some rest too, you know?" the man advised. "I know gems don't really function like humans, but you're living proof that even gems can get overworked and worn out. You're the head of the beach house now; go sleep wherever you want; I won't tell a soul."

 

Peridot smirked as Greg winked at her. "Funny you should say that. I wanted to search through the house to see if there's any artifact lying around that could help us out anyway, and Lapis dared me to sleep somewhere besides the bathroom for once… sounds like I have no reason  _not_  to raid the Crystal Gems' home base."

 

"Just try not to break everything is all I ask," Greg requested. "Odds are I'll be footing the bill for replacements, y'know?"

 

"I promise only to try," Peridot swore, giving Greg a salute. She eyed the beach house; the entrance to the Crystal Gems' Temple, and scrambled over to it.

 

Pumpkin was plenty satisfied to sleep the night in Lion's mane by the fire on the beach. Greg retreated to his van. Bismuth was hard at work in her sanctuary, smelting pieces of the outer layers of both Yellow and Blue Diamond's ships.

 

She didn't expect this, but Bismuth was more than amused when the brightly colorful outer plating pieces begin to mix into another hue entirely as the pieces became one. That gave Bismuth a brilliant idea, but she'd keep it to herself and just focus on making more in the meantime. It's not like she had been given any design guidelines to actually build ship parts yet…

 

Lapis was hard at work further away on an uninhabited island; she loathed to admit it, but Peridot was right. She had never been in a situation where she had to fight where water sources were scarce. At least, nothing in recent memory. She was so accustomed to squashing opponents in an instant using obscene amounts of water to do so, and Lapis knew very well she couldn't possibly bring that much with her to Homeworld.

 

It wasn't too hard honing techniques using much less water than usual, but the aquatic gem struggled with her instinctive urge to just pick up more water from the ocean right next to her once she ran out of what she trained with. She wasn't accustomed to going out of her way to recycle the water she used, and she needed to adjust to trying to draw the water back to her as much as possible after every attack. But Lapis didn't falter; now that Peridot had convinced her to come along despite her reservations, she couldn't bear to let everyone down just because it was annoying and tedious to limit the amount of water she could use offensively. The less water the Crystal Gems needed to carry along for their mission, the easier it would be to fit in their imprisoned friends on the way back.

 

Peridot, at that time, had finished her preliminary scanning of the beach house and now stood before the Temple Gate. The little green technician giggled to herself as she considered her options.

 

"It was  _stupid_  easy to break in here before," Peridot recalled. "Now whose room should I claim for the night…?"

 

Then she smirked. "Of course; gotta pick the one who'd be the most upset about it:  _Pearl's room!_ "

 

She lit up her gem over Pearl's symbol, still mischievously chuckling to herself before realizing that, unlike last time, nothing happened. " _Rrrghgh_ , come on! It worked like this before!"

 

Then it dawned on her: there was a difference. Back then, Peridot had her limb enhancers and much more immediate ways to hack into doors. Now that they were no more, it would take much more effort to force the door open.

 

"Hmph; I bet she reset the code or blacklisted me while they trapped me in the bathroom," Peridot deduced. "Pearl  _would_  do that… alright, let's try Amethyst's. They told me her dwelling is an abomination to all gemkind, but  _I'll_  be the judge of that. She is a Shorty Squad member, after all. We are still, as she would put it, "tight"."

 

She tried again, but like the first attempt, the door did not respond and no lights activated. "Aw,  _come on!_  This can't be real!"

 

But it was.

 

"You know what? Forget that," Peridot decided. "She's the reason I can't access these doors like I used to. Tossing my limb enhancers into the ocean… just…  _really?_ Hmph." The little gem that could would not stop there. "Okay, then! Garnet! She's still cool; she has to be cool with everything since she just had a wedding!"

 

The theory was soon debunked; Garnet's room was just as unresponsive.

 

_**"I HATE YOU!"** _

 

Peridot exploded at the door, letting her rage and agitation flow freely with her growling while she banged against the antiquated barrier.

 

Luckily, Peridot's punches may as well have been kitten strikes, as her little fit of rage left no marks on the door. Once she was tired of channeling her anger, Peridot stomped away from the gate.

 

She did turn around just before running back and delivered a final kick to the Temple Gate, but all that did was give Peridot a sore leg. Of course, Peridot noticed there were more symbols on the door than there were Crystal Gems living in this residence, but since she was locked out by three in a row already, it was safe to assume the original Crystal Gems deactivated their gate while they were gone.

 

"So much for that!" Peridot threw up her hands and walked away for good this time. She was a very sore loser and absolutely hated having to give up.

 

"Guess I'll have to show Lapis tomorrow so she'll know I'm not making it up," she grumbled as she approached the lounge of the house, and familiar small ladder a little ways off caught her eye.

 

"Oh,  _right_ ," she just remembered, and felt like a clod for letting it slip her mind. Peridot cast her gaze upwards to find the little area above the others known as Steven's room. How could she forget? This was where she hid under the cover of darkness to kidnap Steven.

 

She couldn't remember ever getting the chance to enjoy this bed. She noticed a TV to her other side that was a relic even by human standards, then took notice to the Dolphin console on the floor a well as the controllers. She crawled onto the mattress, doing her best to avoid disturbing the stuffed animals.

 

Stuck between the headboard and pillows was a photograph of Connie. Peridot plucked it out and took a close look. A sobering sadness took over; she so easily forgot Connie was a prisoner on Homeworld too, just like Steven.

 

She placed the photo back where she found it, stifling a sniffle. Greg was right about this rescue mission keeping the leader Peridot grounded whenever she faltered. But he knew, Lapis knew, and Bismuth had correctly suspected it was more than that.

 

It was really Steven Universe who brought her subconscious back to Earth when it tried to float away. That same boy, even when he wasn't physically with them, urged the leader to dry her tears and stay on track. He stopped a tangent dead in its tracks. When the stress and self-doubt of Peridot's position became too much, Steven was there in spirit to purge the gem's mind of those toxic notions.

 

While she laid on the mattress, trying to get herself to sleep, Peridot's eyes opened wide as she felt her subconscious accept the truth of her motivation. The problem became clear: Steven would only randomly come to mind to calm her down. Either that or it needed to be triggered by someone saying his name. What she needed was something tangible; something she could take out at any time and cure herself of the jitters.

 

She glanced back up at the Connie photo and had an idea. Peridot rolled off the bed and started to dig around underneath Steven's bed.

 

" _Nyahah!_  Got it!" The gem plopped herself out from under the bed; her arms latched around a giant binder. It was nearly three-quarters her size, but it was relatively light.

 

Peridot hopped back on the bed and cracked open the binder, lip quivering into a heartfelt smile as she saw what was inside.

 

"This is exactly what I need to get through this."

* * *

 

**[ THE TRUTH IS YOU CAN FIND US WHEREVER YOU ARE**

**JUST LOOK UP**

**WE'RE FLYIN' HIGH WITH THE STARS CAUSE**

**TONIGHT IS THE NIGHT… ]**


	2. Center of Gravity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the power of teamwork, Peridot and her team construct a spaceship worthy of a mission to Homeworld. Everyone is prepared and has a role to play... just how prepared IS Peridot, though?

The following morning, the Crystal Gems all assembled at the same spot on the beach, each having a refreshed, renewed sense of purpose. It was just a little after dawn; Bismuth was in fact carrying some of the pieces she smelted last night and brought them to her workbench. Lapis now wore a medium-sized pouch around her hips, sliding to the right side. It was the same kind of container used for any human crazy enough to traverse a desert. Greg hadn't gotten his supplies just yet (the stores weren't open this early), but he did bring his guitar along. He figured it had no practical purpose to the mission, but figured it would boost morale as the other gems would work tirelessly throughout the day.

 

Peridot was the last to join; she wasn't used to sleeping, really. She carried one of her ship designs and had some basic tools she found inside the house in her other hand.

 

"Hey, 'bout time you showed up, fearless leader!" Bismuth greeted/teased. "I got some samples to show you. You decided on what kinda ship we're making, right?"

 

"Y-yeah, sorry for the delay," Peridot apologized and handed over the specs for the ship they would soon save their friends with. "I settled on this one; adequate size to fit us, our supplies, and everyone we're taking home with us. We'll be in Homeworld within a few hours. And if our performance is optimal, we should be able to fully construct the ship in under two days."

 

Peridot nearly walked away before remembering something, and turned around blushing with embarrassment. "O-oh, and I apologize for not accompanying you last night. I ended up having unscheduled consultations with… pretty much all of you, actually."

 

"No worries, Peri," Bismuth assured, not hesitating to give her new leader a pardon. "It kinda worked out because I can surprise you now. I'm thinkin' this should be our ship's outer shell, right?"

 

Peridot inspected these unusual smelt lumps that had a somewhat familiar finish to them. "Wait a second… isn't this the outer plating for the Diamonds' ships? You actually made building material of that…! But… hm." She looked up at Bismuth; her eyes already nearly sparkling in delight. "This color  _is_ divine… but why is it like that? Does intense heat change the color?"

 

"Oho, better than that!" Bismuth was so proud of herself; she was waiting all night to talk about this. "I used outer plates from both Yellow  _and_  Blue's ships. Once they mixed together…"

 

 _"It changed to green!"_  Peridot squealed. "I had no idea pigments could mix in smelting!"

 

"Normally, it doesn't," Bismuth affirmed. She had a big smile on her face; she can tell she made Peridot's day already. "But this  _is_  from the Diamonds' ships. When I saw that last night, I just realized… you know how we can  _really_  tell the Diamonds to take this job and shove it? We'll pilfer their tech and taint their iconic colors with the color of Peridot!"

 

Peridot's eyes grew wider and wider, as did her pupils. They sparkled with awe and she could barely speak properly; she was too busy ogling this miracle of experimental smelting. In a split second, Peridot leaped over to Bismuth and hugged her around the waist. Given how large and sturdy the veteran was compared to her miniature captain, Peridot's pounce did not knock her down. All the same, she laughed along and let Peridot bask in the moment.

 

 _"Bismuth, I officially love you now!"_ This was more than Peridot ever could have hoped for. Her ship would actually be stylish, represent her,  _and_  mock the Diamonds all at once.

 

"Hah! Happy to serve, my Peridot!" Bismuth joked; she certainly didn't expect the young gem to react  _this_  well, but perhaps it was a sign of good fortune. "Did you know in Earth culture, green is the color of luck?"

 

"I actually did not know that!" Peridot exclaimed while releasing her hold on Bismuth. "So you're suggesting our ship will have good fortune?"

 

Bismuth chuckled at Peridot's childlike wonder. "With any luck, that might just happen!" That elicited some laughs from Peridot and Greg. It sounded like a snort came from Lapis, but she stifled it almost quickly enough to cover it completely. Just almost. "So, now that I got an idea of what we're making here, you gonna tag along with me to get more scrap from the ships? You might be able to salvage a control panel or a steering mechanism, but it's not completely safe in there. Sounds like a herd of insects."

 

 _"Robonoids!"_  Peridot exclaimed with joy. "Oh, I  _need_  to see this! If I can salvage enough of them, we might get this done by tomorrow morning!  _Ooh_ , if I can harvest their binding gel, we'll be set! I-I could actually repair a Homeworld Warp Pad! We could-"

 

"Perhaps stick to your plan," Lapis dryly advised. "If we fix that, there will be no escape because the enemy will warp right behind us."

 

" _Nnrrgh_ … good point," Peridot conceded. Being brought down from her excitement. It just dawned on her that she's been acting like a child at her birthday party since they assembled here. "Um, Bismuth, hold that thought," she requested in a gentler tone before the lead gem turned her attention to her former roommate. "I see you acquired a new accessory, Lapis. Now, progress report."

 

"Nice try, but you're not fooling anyone," Lapis taunted. "I'm doing a test run with this pouch right now. I'll admit, it's… very frustrating to conserve and reuse the water when there's an ocean right next to me. You know how much water I'm used to using for anything."

 

Peridot nodded in agreement. "Indeed. The ocean is clearly an unnecessary distraction. I recommend training inland, far away from any body of water. I believe you'll get a better idea of how it will feel like when we're on Homeworld. I do hope you won't need to use it at all, but…"

 

"Wishful thinking, I know," Lapis grumbled. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind supervising the training so I can get some more immediate feedback?"

 

That crushing pressure within Peridot began to resurface. She winced a bit before speaking up. "I believe I need to set up an official schedule; you want me to watch your water works and Bismuth wants me to collect scrap for the ship. I can't be in two places at once, and I've got my own tasks that must be fulfilled."

 

"Oh…" Lapis understood, a bit downtrodden.

 

"No big deal," Bismuth assured. "I can manage on my own, so–"

 

Peridot smirked. "Actually, I just had a quick collaborative project we should do immediately. The beach will look like a trash heap, but we need to save all the time we can going from place to place."

 

Bismuth just blinked. "You talkin' about gettin' that other ship flung over here from the other side?"

 

"We have just the right combination of powers to make that happen!" Peridot proclaimed, though she had serious doubts her power could affect something so big. It wasn't that long ago that Peridot was able to levitate trucks with her powers… and even then, she couldn't push those too high up and it took nearly all of her energy to maintain the levitation. "What we need to do is- _nyaaaaaugh!_ "

 

Peridot felt the ground rumble with the loudest thud she had ever heard, followed up with an average wave of water that rushed through the entire area. It was almost deep enough to reach her bosom, which freaked her out a bit for some reason. And Lapis couldn't help but take notice to poor little Peridot flailing in relatively calm water (more so than what Lapis usually conjures) with her hands fixated on keeping her body above the big star on her uniform from getting wet. She had never seen this kind of behavior… but she opted to save it to ask about while getting some work done.

 

Once the water receded, Peridot's arms dropped down... and she looked so annoyed. "Thanks for waiting for my  _signal_ , you two."

 

"Oh, sorry! Guess I just got a little too excited over how great of an idea that was. No more traveling halfway across the island for scrap, now! Good thinkin' Peridot!" It just seemed impossible to get mad at Bismuth. Especially after that pleasant surprise…

 

"You know your powers aren't ready for something like that, Peridot," Lapis reminded her friend once she made landfall again. "You still have limitations; that's all there is to it."

 

That drew a tired sigh out of Peridot. "You always know how to lighten up the mood, Lapis."

 

Now that both of the Diamond ships were right next to their base of operations, Bismuth couldn't help herself; she approached the pile and started gathering scrap right away.

 

"Just focus on what your real strengths are, Peridot." Lapis walked past her without so much as a glance. She stopped briefly. "It was a really good idea to do this."

 

For once, Peridot felt flattered. But she stumbled over to reach Lapis once she saw the watery wings and her stance that indicated she was about to fly away. "Wait,  _wait!_  Not yet, Lapis!"

 

Lapis let out a sigh of her own as she saw Peridot from the corner of her eye, rushing over and stumbling repeatedly. She turned around just in time to see Peridot fully trip over and splat face-first into the sand. Admittedly, Lapis was glad she waited to see that.

 

Peridot pulled herself up, staggered a bit before shaking the sand off her face and hair, and finally made it to Lapis just seconds before she flew off. "S-so, remember yesterday I told you to talk to Bismuth about cooling down the ship parts? I presume you haven't talked to her at all yet."

 

" _I have my reasons_ ," Lapis muttered under her breath. Peridot caught it, but decided not to press on the matter. "Correct. I suppose I should get that out of the way; it looks like she's getting a lot this time."

 

"That's the spirit!" Peridot cheered, and for a moment Lapis could have sworn she heard and saw Steven Universe himself then and there in Peridot's place. It was just  _too_  on-point. "While you handle that, I'm gonna go inside the wreckage and see what I can salvage for our ship's interior. There might even be some components I can reverse-engineer!"

 

If it weren't for the verbiage, Lapis still could have sworn that was still Steven Universe talking to her. "Right; sounds good," Lapis agreed. "You go on ahead. I don't trust someone with your level of grace walking behind me… no offense." Her smile said she totally meant it, though.

 

Peridot audibly grumbled, but opted not to make a spectacle out of all this. She ran on towards the wreckage of Yellow Diamond's ship and looked for a way to enter the mangled remains of its interior. Lapis smirked, because of course Peridot would want to loot that first. She turned around to see a rather humorous Peridot-shaped imprint on the wet sand, but that wasn't the only noteworthy oddity on this patch of sand. Right next to the Peridot imprint (Lapis entertained the idea of calling it a Perimprint…) was a photo laying face-down.

 

Lapis knew she was probably sticking her nose where it didn't belong… then again, Peridot would be a massive hypocrite to call her out on something like that. Either way, it didn't stop her from picking up the photo to see what Peridot had clearly been hiding underneath her uniform. It wasn't hard to connect the dots…

* * *

 

 

The day passed by, with Greg coming in and out, but he was never gone for long. Without a real need for lunch breaks or sleeping, an astounding amount of progress was made by the time dusk settled in. It helped that two of the three gems were working in their element. Constant work made it rather easy for Peridot to keep a level head an even temper. As long as she had something to keep her busy, her leadership skills shined the brightest. Bismuth and even Lapis had no reason to be concerned… for now.

 

Then came nightfall. A near-complete spaceship with glorious, glossy emerald coating was propped up by multiple beams nearby Bismuth's workbench. Peridot was inside, applying the finishing touches to the interior. As she predicted, they would definitely be ready to take off before sunrise.

 

Technically, they could leave at midnight, but it had been a while since she checked how far along Lapis had come training herself to use only a finite amount of water. This is something she needed to know in order to prepare for how much water would be stored on the ship. Greg stocked the ship with a week's worth of his human needs - it actually took up very little space - meanwhile Lion and Pumpkin had already decided the ship was a nicer place to sleep than the chilly beach and took their spots. Bismuth did a final exterior quality check, and Lapis took the time to hone her skills once more. Nearby her were a few empty water coolers, ready to be filled with seawater when it was officially time to blast off.

 

"Huh, Steven didn't tell me he wrote that song with you. When was this?"

 

Peridot didn't turn to face Greg, as she was still in the middle of the penultimate phase of bug-fixing the system and controls. But she did smile a bit as she continued to work. "This happened at the barn. We were building the drill for the Cluster. The clods were all sitting around just staring at the sunset while we still had a drill to finish. I still believe I was justified to berate them for their careless and lazy behavior that day."

 

"Hm, when you put it like that, I can't disagree," Greg admitted, absentmindedly strumming his fingers on his guitar. "But Steven still somehow got this song out of you, is that right?" He quietly played the first couple of chords, which elicited a giggle out of Peridot.

 

"How was I supposed to know music was contagious?!" she replied between her laughs.

 

"You learned the hard way, then. But sometimes, that's the best way." Greg dabbled through a few other bits of the song. "Okay, you're right. A guitar can't fit the ukulele's shoes. It already sounds way better in my head."

 

Peridot hummed along with the notes, grateful that an hour's worth of bug-fixing was nearing its end. She did appreciate Greg's company to offset the boredom of this particular task, and when she managed to teach Greg  _that_  song, something within her swelled with pride. She managed to teach it just by going off of how she remembered it sounded, as she never learned how to write sheet music. It felt like such a great accomplishment. She was almost  _too_  happy.

 

"I'm starting to get used to it; you're fine," Peridot assured him. "Besides, it'll be that much better when you get to hear the real deal when we get Steven back."

 

"I'll definitely need a word with that boy; he should be letting me know every time he writes a new song!" Greg exclaimed, but it was all in good fun. He needed to be in a good place mentally, as he knew in a matter of ours, he'd be up in outer space on the way to an extremely difficult mission. He started strumming the final chords. "C'mon, at least do the last part one more time? Maybe you'll serenade the rest of the bugs to sleep."

 

Peridot smirked; she was nearing the very last bit of code to review anyway. She played along to the tune… somewhat.

 

 _"No, that is not how bugs work, sir_   _–_   _"_

 

"Uh-oh, that's not right!"

 

 _"I'd watch that tone if were you, sir_   _–_   _"_

 

"I'm in trouble?"

 

_"Who would think my adlib's worth more, than peace and love on the planet Earth?"_

 

One moment later, a low beeping done broke the post-song silence. "Scan complete! Let's just cross that off the list, and– oh." Peridot's smile widened as she gazed down at her laptop. "That was the last test…"

 

Suddenly, Lapis' head poked up from the open hatch below. "Hey, turn down that racket, you hippies."

 

Peridot and Greg just stared at Lapis like she grew an extra head.

 

"Oh– sorry. That was my Uncle Andy impression," Lapis clarified.

 

"Ohhhh."

 

"Guess it needs more work."

 

"Actually, the line itself was perfect," Peridot pointed out. "It's the accent that makes it all come together."

 

"Yeah, that's what I was gonna say," Greg admitted. "Don't force yourself, though."

 

"Oof, I dunno, man. Dat sounds like some qoo-ality enta-tainment for da low-ng ride ta space if ya asks me."

 

That was enough to make Peridot fall out of her seat, kicking her feet with the biggest laugh she's had since her reforming. Greg was holding his sides while busting up with equally hysterical laughter.

 

Lapis just smirked and patiently waited for the two to get the giggles out of their system. It was a pity Bismuth was too preoccupied making final routine inspections around the ship; she probably would have loved to hear that.

 

"So, hey," Lapis spoke up again once Peridot was just about done. "Bismuth's pretty much done with her end of the quality check. Are we bug-free in here, Peridot?"

 

"Ah… ah, yeah, the scan just finished," Peridot squeaked before she got to her knees and climbed back into her seat. "I think we're about ready to set off. For once, we're ahead of schedule!"

 

"Cool," Lapis acknowledged. "I just need a minute to get some water."

 

Peridot looked over to her teammate, looking much calmer now. "How many are you gonna need?"

 

"Mm… let's make it three, just to be on the safe side," Lapis figured. "That's okay, right?"

 

To that, Peridot gave a noncommittal shrug. "Fine by me. Better that we get too much than too little. Worst case scenario, we can water bomb one of the Diamond clods on the way back."

 

Lapis nodded and ducked out to grab two of the empty plastic containers and flew out over the ocean.

 

In the meantime, Bismuth came aboard and took a seat. "Woo, it's way bigger than it looked on the outside! Man, when we started, I was sure my first space ship would be some rinky-dink hunk of junk that'd barely fit the six of us!" She made sure to count Lion and Pumpkin. "This is  _pristine!_ "

 

"Eh, we did hijack pretty much every part of this ship from the Diamonds'," Peridot slyly reminded her. "You know, it's nice that they finally gave something back to the working class."

 

Bismuth smirked and nodded heartily. "Ain't that the truth." There was a silent pause. "We're really going back; I can hardly believe it…"

 

Peridot blinked, just remembering she needed to be a leader and cover all the bases. "Right, so… once Lapis comes back with her water, we're getting out of here. Let me know if you're all packed up and equipped to go. Once I close this hatch, we're beyond the point of no return."

 

"All I'm ever gonna need is my weapon," Bismuth assured her boss. "It's not like I've been unbubbled long enough to get settled back in, anyway."

 

"I'm good," Greg confirmed. "Thanks for letting me bring the guitar, by the way."

 

"Not a problem." Peridot smiled down at Pumpkin, who was exploring every little nook and cranny of her new surroundings. Lion was… well, Lion. With her eyes back toward the front, she saw Lapis dive into the ocean with her third water cooler in hand. "Just a little bit longer, Steven," she whispered. "I'm gonna get you out of there… I'm getting you all out of there."

 

Discretely, she slid her fingers down her uniform to bring out one of two pictures she brought along from Steven's picture collection last night. She figured he wouldn't mind; this was for a good cause. She kept the photo close to her chest, obscuring it. After all, there was no reason believe something could be wrong right this very second.

 

One eye opened abruptly as she heard Lapis fly in with three large jugs of water.

 

"You sealed those, right, Lapis?"

 

"Airtight," she confirmed. "I'm fully prepared; we should get moving."

 

Bismuth and Greg audibly agreed with her. Peridot confirmed the coordinates of their destination on the front screen. Just before moving her finger to shut the hatch for good, she decided to give that picture she still held one last look for luck, as she kept it pressed to her chest the entire time since drawing it out.

 

This was not the picture she wanted out at a time like this. A picture of Steven and herself making identical faces close to the camera (must have been a Funland trip) was the last thing she needed to see. But it was an easy mistake to make; she wasn't even looking when she took the photo out.

 

The real problem arose when Peridot couldn't feel another picture under her uniform. She patted herself down completely; the other photo had been separated from her. Peridot had no idea where it could have fallen off or how. She knows it isn't in the ship; she's the one who installed the ship's interior assets. The only answer is that it fell in the sand outside somewhere, but that was the worst place to lose anything. That was a lot of ground to cover, and everyone was ready to go. If it got buried, she'd definitely never see it again.

 

"ALL RIGHT! WOO! OUTER  _SPACE_ , BABY! LET'S GET THOSE DIAMONDS OUT OF OUR BISMUTH!"

 

Well, that was all it took for Peridot to scream, and not in her usual hysterical way. Not even bothering to address her crew, she hopped up and jumped down the hatch she nearly sealed up seconds ago.

 

"Whoa, what?!"

 

"Was it something I said…?"

 

Lapis stood up and grumbled. "Crap, I knew there was something I forgot about." She quickly looked to the others. "I'm sorry, everyone. I'll just tell you what you need to know; I have a feeling Dot's going to be too torn up to explain when I drag her sorry butt back here."

 

"What just happened?!" Greg asked. "She was fine just a second ago…"

 

"Simple. She thinks she dropped something important to her on the beach. Which she did, but I found it. Should've told her sooner. That's all there really is to it; it might be best not to interrogate her right away, so let me handle it."

 

Lapis was annoyed, but resolute. Peridot was the only reason she agreed to this suicide mission in the first place. She wasn't about to let the leader of the Crystal Gems implode on herself before they even got off the ground. "I won't be long," she assured the rest before diving down the hatch to fly after her.

 

Luckily, she didn't need to go far. Predictably, Peridot was digging in the sand all around her.

 

Amusing as it would've been to just hover behind and listen to Peridot insult herself over and over, this was not the time. Lapis landed by Peridot's side and poked her hair. "Hey, missing something?"

 

"G-go back to the stinkin' ship, Lazuli!"

 

"Ooh… you're  _pissed_." Peridot hadn't called her that since they became roommates. Lapis reached around the back of her halter top and pulled out the missing photo. She peeled off the plastic wrap, which she had been thoughtful enough to do ahead of time since it was only a matter of time before she got completely wet somehow. "Hey, you're missing this, right? Why you would is beyond me…"

 

Peridot looked up. Sure enough, in Lapis' hands was a very simple and generic photo of Steven. Just Steven. "Ohhhmystars, ohgoodness, thank-" She reached up to grab it, only for Lapis to raise it higher so she couldn't reach. "Oh, I'm  _so_  glad I didn't finish that. GIVE THAT HERE!"

 

Lapis just stared down at Peridot with disdain. To add insult to injury, she started to fly up just to make sure Peridot couldn't reach her or the picture. "Maybe you should explain yourself first," she suggested. "Aren't you supposed to be leading us? What kind of example are you setting here?"

 

"N-no example at all!" Peridot shot back. "That's for me to know and for none of you to find out! Now give it back and we can forget this ever happened!"

 

"Look, I'm sorry I'm doing this to you now, Peridot; I really am," Lapis insisted. "I know it's a bad time, but if we don't get this resolved right now, there won't be another opportunity. Not unless you're cool with sharing… whatever  _this_  is to the rest of your team in there."

 

" _NO!_ " Peridot's voice cracked at the idea. "Wh-why can't you let me just keep this to myself?!"

 

The elder gem grew more annoyed by the second. They were going in circles like this. Was tough love not working? It felt like it should… Lapis wasn't comfortable with any of this. But if there was any remote chance that this could jeopardize their mission, she'd put a stop to it here and now.

 

Maybe it was time to go the direct approach. Lapis hated to assume, but she'd have to if there was any chance of getting Peridot to give her  _something_.

 

"Why are you being so dramatic?" Lapis inquired. "This is just a crush, right?"

 

 _"_   _I don't know!"_

 

"Well, that usually points to a "yes", so…"

 

"I just said I don't know!"

 

Now Lapis' patience was running on fumes. "What else could it be?! Puppy love? Deep, obsessive love? You wanna be the Rose to his Greg, is that it?"

 

_"I DON'T KNOW!"_

 

Lapis grit her teeth. She couldn't believe how much Peridot was stonewalling her now. And usually she was so bad at keeping up an act when she was lying…

 

"This can't just be a friend thing." Lapis crossed that off the list. "Familial love… no, doubt it. There's no way you  _hate_  him; that much is obvious."

 

"Y-you just can't leave well enough alone, can you?!" Peridot was on the verge of tears. Actually, it was impressive she lasted this long before "I don't even know how to explain this to myself, never mind you!"

 

Lapis felt a sting just then. Seeing Peridot like that… it was exactly how she felt less than a year ago. Back when she was  _Peridot's_  prisoner, being ruthlessly interrogated. The tides had turned, but not in a way either would have liked right now. It felt insane to even acknowledge that this overly emotional, vulnerable little gem used to be an emotionally devoid, morality-lacking soldier who just barely had more of a soul than a robonoid.

 

She sighed and gently descended to the ground. She walked over, sat down across from Peridot, and set the picture down at the middle between their feet.

 

"Here," Lapis urged. "I'm not going to just wait here and prod you until you cry."

 

"Too late for  _that_ ," Peridot growled, swiping the picture and keeping it close to her. "You just had to over-complicate this, didn't you, Lapis?!"

 

"I'm trying to understand you," Lapis calmly fired back. "Guess you're finally feeling what I felt back when Steven first tried to make us live together and you kept screwing up every chance I gave you for redemption." When she saw Peridot glare daggers at her right back, the elder gem flinched. "Fine, I take back what I said. I don't want to provoke you…"

 

Peridot narrowed her eyes at Lapis, still clutching the picture to her chest. "You sure do suck at not doing things you don't want to do, you know that?"

 

That was an obvious baiting attempt, and Lapis wasn't going to bite. "Something changed," she said. "Something shook you up badly. Almost like your whole world got turned on your head."

 

"You think?! Maybe you heard of a little thing called  _Steven is stuck in Homeworld and I don't even know if he's okay right now because some blue CLOD is standing in my way!_ "

 

Finally, something connected. Lapis could feel it. "You've been all over the place since we told you about that. Is… is that it? Steven's on Homeworld and not on Earth, where he belongs. Earth… life in general... it makes sense when he's around, doesn't it?"

 

Peridot just softly cried into her arms. No snappy comeback and no extreme adverse reaction. Definitely no stonewalling. Lapis was sure she nailed it. She scooted over so she could give Peridot a hug, even if she didn't reciprocate it. There was just one more thing she wanted to ask before she could cast aside any reasonable doubt. "Hey, when you think about things you've learned on Earth… what's something you would say is a lot like Steven? Like as close to Steven it can be without literally being him?"

 

She patiently waited a few moments. Questions like that could be tricky to answer, but the fact that she didn't blurt out a stupid answer right away was a good hint that she took that question seriously.

 

"Mmm… I forgot what humans called them," she finally said. "They look like humans but they're not really… but they can fly, just like you do. Wings are different… bigger and puffier. And their heads… I think they emit some kind of antigravity field. I don't know how else they're keeping those gold-colored hollow discs floating over it."

 

Lapis smiled. This was something she was vaguely familiar with. "I believe they're called angels. And based off what I know of Steven… that's a very accurate way to put him, come to think of it."

 

"He's a special kind of angel," Peridot insisted. "I've seen 'em in movies…"

 

Lapis tried to think if she had seen any of these with Peridot, because nothing rang a bell just yet. "Special how, Peridot? What do they do?"

 

Peridot paused. She hadn't been looking at Lapis since she sat down next to her. She couldn't deny it felt therapeutic to talk about this; there really weren't any plans to get into this anytime soon. It just wasn't the time for something like that. Then again, neither was now. Peridot only had herself to blame, though.

 

"They save specific humans," she quietly recalled. "Save their lives, guide them on the right path… the humans are so messed up, they need that much supernatural help."

 

"Ah, I get it. Guardian angels." That was an even better description for Steven. If Lapis was being honest with herself, she sort of saw Steven that way as well. "That's what Steven is to you. And now that he's so far away, and in trouble on top of that, you're feeling lost."

 

"I'm  _confused_ ," Peridot corrected. She sounded a bit more stable now, so Lapis released her hold. "Everything makes sense when he's here. One second, I'm with everybody and I'm not even afraid to run my mouth at Yellow Diamond in person, because I felt so secure with that life and everyone in it. Then poof! Literally… poof! I wake up and  _nothing makes any sense_."

 

Lapis saw where she was coming from, but still. For not being able to tell up from down, Peridot had done an amazing job making everyone believe she knew what she was doing.

 

"Like you said the other day ago, it's weird that I don't care that I'm returning to Homeworld! It's for the right reasons, but I should still be a little bit afraid, don't you think?! But we'll be saving Steven and the others, so I  _wanna_  go there, Lapis! When I see him again and know he's alive, I know it'll make me all better! I feel like I've lost my center of gravity or something, don't you get it?"

 

That made Lapis smile. She understood now. "Because Steven  _is_ your center of gravity, Peridot. Your center of gravity left Earth and is on Homeworld right now. You're going to chase him down, and you'll put him back where he belongs. It's no wonder you kept warding me away with all those "I don't know"s earlier. It's not that you don't want to tell me. You just don't know what to even say."

 

"That won't even matter if we can't get him out of Homeworld," Peridot muttered. "You're taking this too well… don't you think this is completely messed up? It's not like he's  _your_  center of gravity…"

 

Now Lapis smirked. "I think the world of Steven, but you're right. I don't think it's as complicated as you believe it to be. Just look at that picture of him and you. I love spending time with Steven, but his idea of being with friends versus mine is… well, a little too different. Stuff like that is too loud, too exposed to people who can see. Baggage might also factor into this."

 

That prompted Peridot to look up at Lapis. "You mean the fact that all of you are, at a minimum, 5 Earth millennia of age, and had something to do with the war and the rebellion stuff that I didn't even know about until coming to this planet?"

 

"Heh. I had a feeling you weren't anywhere near even a thousand years old, so you're welcome for covering for you with Connie that one time."

 

Lapis suspected the token Era 2 of the Crystal Gems was much, much younger than she cared to admit. But the fact that Peridot was so removed from that ancient drama was what made her somewhat refreshing to be around. "Peridot, can you stand up?"

 

She did so, but she still looked a little pouty. "I  _guess_  I'm ready to go back now."

 

At least they weren't far away. Before reaching the ship, Lapis turned around to ask Peridot her original question. "So, can you tell me why these pictures mean so much to you? I know you just got them from Steven's room last night; they're not keepsakes."

 

Peridot's lip quivered for a bit, her eyes darting around from left to right while she tried to find some justification for blowing up over something so pedestrian.

 

"They're my… gravity stabilizers," she finally said. "One cheers me up when I'm feeling like a defective piece of scrap; the other gives me strength and… pulls me back into reality when I start to break down. I realized last night that thinking about him is what keeps me going as a freaking  _leader_  now. But I can't count on my memory just flashing at me at the right time  _every_  time. I need to be able to control that, so that's why I picked these specific photographs."

 

"Gravity stabilizers… I like that," Lapis said with a smirk. "Well, at the very least, if the "center of gravity" theory proves to be true, then you're going to be a  _boss_  once we step into Homeworld."

 

"I'm counting on that," Peridot muttered. Both came through the hatch and back into their ship. "I apologize for the delay, everyone. Don't bother getting mad; none of you could ever hope to be more angry at me than I am."

 

With that, she plopped down to her seat and picked up from where she led off. The hatch closed, lights shined all around the ship's interior as everyone looked at Lapis after she took her seat, like they expected her to be the Oracle of all things Peridot.

 

She just shrugged at them and smiled. "We're all in this deep, aren't we? Let's see where this takes us."

 

And they took off, leaving the Earth behind within moments and on a fast course to Homeworld. There, Steven Universe and the original Crystal Gems waited for them. Emboldened with resolve now that the rescue mission was underway, Peridot couldn't help but express herself the best way she knew how.

 

 

 

**"Prepare yourself, Homeworld! I'm coming back not as your slave, but as your savior!"**

* * *

 


	3. The Lucky Peridot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During the transit from Earth to Homeworld, the spaceship receives an official name. The team has a meeting discussing strategy and what to do in a worst-case scenario. Most importantly, Lapis needs to get her issues with Bismuth sorted out.

"Coordinates, confirmed. Trajectory, set. System efficiency, stable. Condition of vessel, 100% with no compromised structural integrity. Estimated time of arrival… 3.3 Earth hours."

 

It was a tense moment for some, adjusting to their surroundings. Though it wasn't Greg's first time off-planet, it would never cease to both astound and terrify him. Bismuth respectfully kept herself quiet as Peridot read off the diagnostics; she did help build this ship, after all. And it was her very first, no less. Lapis, meanwhile, just kept to herself. She committed herself to this, but once the scenery abruptly shifted from Beach City to the deep reaches out outer space, her own trauma slithered back into her mind. She ultimately willed it away; all it took was for Lapis to watch Greg and Peridot, and she remembered why she was here. Just as liftoff commenced, Lapis sounded almost excited… was that really her own enthusiasm, or her attempt to rally up her teammates?

 

It didn't really matter. Finally, Peridot shifted the controls to autopilot and the ship aligned itself to a perfect horizontal angle. Now it would be safe to stand up and walk around. Peridot did just that, coming over to face her teammates.

 

"Liftoff, successful! Welcome to Phase 2 of our mission, everybody!"

 

"Well… I handled that better than I thought," Greg said in near disbelief. "Good piloting, Peri- _whoooah!_ "

 

Suddenly, Greg floated out of his seat. "Aah, I didn't think I'd be like this for the whole trip! This is kind of… a bit much!"

 

"Hmph," Peridot huffed. "Fortunately for you, I did install an antigravity feature. Consider yourself one lucky human being, because I almost decided not to." She leaned over, pressed a button, and Greg landed perfectly back in his seat.

 

Greg laughed to himself nervously. "Guess so; thanks for reconsidering it, Peridot. You know, we never did name this ship…"

 

Peridot tilted her head at her human teammate. "I presume that's an Earth custom? It's not unheard of on Homeworld, but that's reserved for the vessels noteworthy enough to earn one."

 

"Well, on Earth, it's bad luck to have a nameless ship," Greg explained. "Whether or not there's any truth to it, I just feel nervous even giving fate an excuse to jinx us."

 

"Well, this ship  _was_  made on Earth," Bismuth pointed out. "Doesn't matter if it's all Homeworld material. It's the spirit of those who built it, and those who use that ship that counts. So I think it deserves the Earth treatment."

 

"Sounds nice, but what are we gonna call it?" Lapis asked, only partially invested in this. While she did help with the ship's construction, her input was minuscule compared to Bismuth and Peridot's. The gem looked to Greg. "What do you usually name your ships?"

 

Greg dismissively waved his hand and let out a chuckle. "Honestly? Pretty much anything. I know it's popular to name them after a lady you really like, but sometimes it's just random names depending on who you ask. But now that I think about it, giving the ship a name might be important. If you're about to land in a place with people living there, don't they usually radio you in and ask for your ship's name before they let you land?"

 

"You may have a point there," Peridot conceded. "Okay, so let's name the ship. Toss in suggestions and we'll vote for one."

 

That drew a smirk out of Lapis. "I'm surprised, Peridot. I figured you would pull rank and veto whatever you don't like. Y'know, because you're basically the captain here and you could do that."

 

Peridot just shrugged off that little bit of chiding. "Don't you worry. I'll find plenty of other ways to be a terrifying boss to you, Lapis." She then faced her teammates, definitely going out of her way to look like a true authoritarian in demeanor. "Okay, I'll go around the room. Starting with…" The captain turned her head to the far right, where Greg sat. "… you, PUU."

 

"Me first?" Greg pointed at himself. "Well, okay. Let me thin- Peridot, what the heck? Puu?!"

 

Peridot smirked and nodded. "My apologies, but I've yet to find the optimal nickname for you, Paternal Unit Universe. So until then, your placeholder name is P-U-U, for short."

 

Bismuth and even Lapis were seen trying to stifle their snickering, because that didn't make Greg feel that much better about his current nickname. "Gee, thanks… well, I guess it makes sense why  _you_  don't see anything wrong with it. I-I'll just take it, then, while we're on this trip. After that, something else, please?"

 

Peridot totally knew why her nickname for Greg was… well, quite undignified. She still found it hilarious. And for once in her life, she actually managed to make a convincing fib; Greg fully believed this was just another alien-not-knowing-human-context thing that Peridot was quite notorious for. "I'll think about it," she said. "So, what are you thinking of for a ship name?"

 

"Hm, uh…"

 

"PUU, you were the one who proposed this," Peridot said to him, narrowing her eyes. "I assumed you already had a name in mind."

 

"H-heh, well, there are  _lots_  of names to choose from, and-"

 

"We still have plans to finalize," Peridot reminded him. "Answer within the next ten seconds, or your right to vote is revoked."

 

Greg wasn't used to Peridot like… this. Were it not for her stature, the gem would have come off like a very strict school teacher. He figured when she suddenly left the ship before they took off, it might have been for more than just losing an item.

 

"How about the 4-Leaf Clover?" He suggested literally the first thing that came to mind.

 

"The… what?" Peridot was skeptical. "Oh, wait. Those tiny plants that hide in the grass. Trifolium. Human culture likes to make propaganda about the four-leafed variants, but during my extended stay at the barn, I never once saw them. Clearly, they are myths."

 

"Nah, just  _really_  rare, actually," Greg corrected. "That's why they're a symbol of luck; they wouldn't be that special if you saw them all the time. And hey, four leaves can stand for the four of us as a team!" That part sounded like something that he just came up with.

 

Peridot nodded. "Very well. Let's move on…" She next approached Bismuth. "… to you. And try to resist putting your name in there as a pun," she forewarned. "I know that must be hard."

 

"Gotta say, I really like what Greg is goin' for," Bismuth confessed. "The theme, that is. Not so much the name. Luck, and somethin' green. So I was thinking…"

 

She went silent for a moment, wishing Peridot would stop giving her that piercing stare. "Uh, the Celadon Serendipity?"

 

Peridot took a step back, giving Bismuth a silent nod in acknowledgement. It was time to poll her last crew mate. "I'm sure I'm wasting my time asking you, Lapis. But I'll humor you; what's your idea for a name?"

 

Lapis, fully relaxed in her seat, issued smirk that exuded sheer smugness. "Wow, you both suck at names," she teased before addressing Peridot. "Easy. Just call it the PeriLuck."

 

Greg and Bismuth blinked and gaped at their confident teammate.

 

" _PeriLuck?_ " Peridot was not as easy to impress; then again, taking the name literally as she often does, she didn't understand the meaning. "That's no word I've ever heard of… is it foreign?"

 

"You disappoint me, Peridot," Lapis chided. "You're as dense as they are terrible at making names. It's a portmanteau: for Peridot's Luck. Or the Lucky Peridot. Either one fits the bill for the shorthand version."

 

"Oh…" Peridot felt her ego take a hit there. "So, sucking up and naming it after me, are you?"

 

"Don't know what you're talking about," Lapis said, still lackadaisical. "I just followed the guidelines; you  _are_  predominantly green, after all."

 

"I vote for that one!" Greg called out and raised his hand.

 

Bismuth followed suit. "Hey, I do respect a play on words," she said. "I'll concede defeat this time, Lapis."

 

Abruptly, Lapis turned her head away to focus on the stars. "Whatever. Take it or leave it, Peridot."

 

This had to be the third or fourth time Peridot noticed some degree of tension between Bismuth and Lapis, although the animosity was entirely coming from the latter. She had hoped whatever this was would be dismissed by the time they got into space; to see it still like this now, that could be risky. Peridot wasn't about to let this to spring up while they're in the middle of a Homeworld base.

 

"Lapis? Is there something you want to say?" Peridot asked, keeping her tone neutral. Bismuth had consistently looked completely ignorant of whatever issue there was, and Lapis had hinted in prior conversations that there were "other" reasons why a talk between her and Bismuth fell through or was needlessly delayed.

 

" _Ugh,_ _no_ _,_ " Lapis groaned. "Not the time or the place, Peridot. We've got more important crap going on right now, you know?"

 

"Y-yeah, I know," Peridot affirmed. "We're settled, then. We refer to our ship as the PeriLuck from now on. But it's high time we have a proper team discussion. Those 3 hours will go by in a flash."

 

Bismuth nodded. "This would be a lot simpler if we had some kind of map. I know the Diamond Palaces are hard to miss, but I doubt we can just park right outside their front door."

 

While Peridot wanted to angrily shake a fist up and curse Amethyst for this, she restrained herself. "The good news is, it'll be easy to obtain one on Homeworld. My concern is where in the world we're going to park this ship. A place that's both secluded and optimal for our escape route will be nearly impossible to find; we can't have it both ways. And we should all agree it's more important that our ship goes by unnoticed."

 

Peridot looked back at the viewing screen at the front of the ship that displayed information on their projected course, how far along they were, and how much time remained before reaching the destination. It also displayed the current time (more accurately, the time it would be in Beach City if they were still there now) and Homeworld's time. Greg wouldn't know since that was obviously in Gem language.

 

"It seems we chose a good time to leave Earth," the young gem noted. "Air traffic should be minimal by the time we're set to make landfall. If we can find a good hiding place for our ship, I'll let you do some recon, Lapis."

 

"Huh?" Lapis didn't expect to be addressed already. "What are you talking about?"

 

"I discouraged your use of flight when we're outdoors on Homeworld," Peridot reminded her. "But if the air traffic is light, I will permit it. I trust you will use that privilege responsibly."

 

That made Lapis smile a bit. "I see. Thank you, Peridot."

 

"Do you have a general idea of where we're gonna land?" Bismuth asked. "You did say you knew present-day Homeworld pretty well."

 

"The ideal spot to land would be at Facet 2; that's where I primarily worked, as well as where I emerged," Peridot said, trying not to let any emotion linger too long in her voice. "It would be wonderful if we could land at a loading dock, but that will draw too much attention."

 

"Didn't you say you had some stuff you were gonna give me to protect this thing, Peridot?"

 

That was Greg, of course. Peridot smiled a bit and walked over to him. "I certainly did; thank you for reminding me." She dug around in some nearby supplies to procure certain items.

 

"Here's your trump card," she said while handing him something that looked like a pronged baton with a yellow gem in the middle to him. "A gem destabilizer. One little touch, and poof goes the clod who tried to invade our ship," she said with a grin. This is best used when they're in close range."

 

"Hm, neat," Greg mumbled as he examined his weapon. "I remember what you said about how to use Pumpkin, too."

 

"Good; make sure she doesn't come to harm," Peridot advised him before giving him other items. "You earthlings have some very handy defensive weaponry," she remarked while giving Greg a pouch that seemed to be filled with balls that could fit on his palm. "I found a few things worth pilfering up in the beach house. I'm sure you know what smoke bombs are."

 

"I sure do!" Greg affirmed with enthusiasm. "What else ya got?"

 

Peridot handed him what looked like a blaster connected to a tube connected to a medium tank. "This one will be a pain to clean up later, but I won't be mad if you have to use it," she assured him. "Liquid adhesive."

 

"You can't believe I how much safer I feel right now!" Greg exclaimed, seemingly excited to actually use these items.

 

"Well, that's good, because that  _is_  their function." Peridot handed over a couple of what looked like 10-sided dice made of obsidian. "Now, these are just prototypes for something much bigger I'm working on, but they're cloaking devices. One for you, and one for Pumpkin."

 

"I get to be invisible, too?!" Greg sounded more and more like his son by the minute. "This is  _awesome!_ "

 

Lapis looked impressed with the spread her friend had offered their human companion. "Wow… you really did a lot more than I thought you were doing when you took breaks to run into the house yesterday."

 

 _"You don't know the half of it."_ That was what Peridot was  _tempted_  to say. But some of the things she did the beach house were best left unsaid for now.

 

"I forgive you for thinking so little of me," Peridot really said with a sweet smile. This whole time, she had been doing much better keeping a professional air about her. It made Lapis wonder about that "center of gravity" theory as they closed in on Homeworld. If there was some truth to it, Peridot had the potential to be an extremely efficient and effective leader; exactly the kind they need for their mission.

 

"I'm glad you made sure to get Greg so well-equipped," Bismuth piped in. "Covering for him and our PeriLuck at the same time. So, if we find a good place to land, we oughta be golden."

 

Peridot couldn't help but blush a little at the praise. "I just had this nagging thought in the back of my mind that I can't overlook this. Like our entire mission could be ruined if I didn't do all of this…"

 

She sounded quite somber all of a sudden. Now that Peridot had brought up failure, Lapis was compelled to ask a very uncomfortable question. "Peridot, I hate to bring this up. Especially when we're so close to starting the mission, but have you thought about what will happen if one of us gets captured or shattered? Even you?"

 

That definitely brought down the whole mood. The small gem both loved and hated that Lapis brought it up. She gulped and closed her eyes while she tried to maintain her composure.

 

"Of course, Lapis," she gently replied. "I think about that more than anything else. I especially think about it once we free Steven and the others; the size of our party will more than double in size, and the larger the party, the harder it is to maintain stealth. So odds are, the journey back to the ship will be far more dangerous than the one we're about to embark on."

 

Lapis could tell Peridot had that on her mind way more than she let on. Bismuth felt a similar impression.

 

"In that case, why not split into smaller groups when we get everyone back?" the war veteran suggested. "Heck, the three of us could split up and cover more ground that way."

 

"Yes, in most circumstances, that would be the ideal tactic," Peridot shot back; her expression hardening. "For our mission, that's the stupidest thing we could possibly do. Did you already forget I'm the only one who actually knows how to navigate Homeworld, Bismuth? We've got the odds stacked against us enough already; we don't need to add on to that once you and Lapis inevitably get lost."

 

"I guess I did forget that," Bismuth muttered, notably embarrassed for doing so. "My bad."

 

From Lapis' standpoint, it almost seemed like Peridot tried to dodge her original question. Actually, it was exactly that. She wouldn't let that slide. "Peridot, you never answered my question."

 

And Peridot knew Lapis had caught on. Given how important the topic was, though, she decided not to play coy. "Well, that depends on who we lose," she said grimly. "If it's me… and if I can help it, if it has to be anyone, it  _will_  be me-"

 

A collective gasp from the group shushed Peridot for a moment, but she forged ahead before they could start protesting.

 

"Look, you wanted me to address this, so let me address it already!"

 

No one spoke up, so Peridot continued. "From an objective standpoint, I stand the greatest chance of not coming out of this alive. There's a high chance we'll pass by hostile gems who will recognize me, and unlike you two, I can't really hold my own in a physical confrontation. Misdirection and trickery are the best I've got; my metal powers still aren't developed enough to do any real damage, or even protect me. I might get kidnapped while your backs are turned, or they'll use me as a hostage to force you into surrendering. You two need to be aware of crap like this!"

 

"W-we  _are_  aware of that, Peri," Bismuth insisted, though the tone in her voice indicated this is the first time she  _really_  thought about this. "But you're running this mission, remember? Who's gonna run the show if you're not there to guide us?"

 

"That depends on the progress made so far on the mission before my demise," Peridot replied coldly. "If it's before you reach Steven, it should fall to you, Bismuth. You at least have experience leading the battlefield, and if I'm taken out, then odds are you two will need that exact kind of expertise to survive and escape."

 

It really sickened Lapis to hear Peridot sound so nonchalant about her own death. She'd wonder what happened to the perpetually paranoid roommate she used to have, but finding out about those "gravity stabilizers", she already knew what brought this on. She wasn't alone, either: neither Greg nor Bismuth sat well with their leader talking like this.

 

"If Steven and the other Crystal Gems are with you when that happens… it should fall to Garnet," Peridot decided. "A real leader will get you all out of there safely if I fail you."

 

Each of Peridot's teammates wanted to say something, or at least object to something she said, but no one could find the words.

 

Something  _very_  uncomfortable itched in the back of Bismuth's mind… and she didn't want to, but if she didn't come out and say it now, there never would be a good time. "Okay, Peridot. Let's talk about how we handle things the other way around."

 

Peridot narrowed her eyes and put her hands on her hips. "Be more specific."

 

Bismuth sighed, but kept her eyes down on her leader. "If we're forced into a position where we have to fight, and there's a spot where you're in a shatter-or-be-shattered struggle… how far would you go?"

 

"I would use no more force than what is absolutely necessary," Peridot firmly answered. "But if it's my life or the enemy's, I'll shatter my enemy. That's justified self-defense. Bear in mind I'm saying that under the assumption that I  _could_  do that. I just told you I'm as strong as a wet noodle."

 

"Fair enough," Bismuth conceded. "So, let's switch the perspective. Say we got Steven and the others freed and we're ambushed while we're heading back. We're all laid out, and someone's cornered Steven. He's seconds away from getting shattered, and the only way to save him is to shatter the enemy yourself. Let's say you're the only other gem standing in the fight; I know in other circumstances you'd call on another's help."

 

That seemed to get the reaction Bismuth wanted: conflicted feelings. Peridot couldn't answer right away. She even broke eye contact with Bismuth while she tried to figure this out.

 

Lapis seemed to not be on the same page as the others for once; to her, it just looked like Bismuth was trying to upset Peridot on purpose. She really had no desire to speak directly to Bismuth if she could help it, and right now… she couldn't help it. "Bismuth, what are you playing at?! Why are you putting her on the spot like this?!"

 

Bismuth turned to Lapis, and for the first time, it wasn't a friendly gesture. "If you knew Steven like I know Steven - and obviously, like  _she_  knows Steven, you'd know the boy is a pacifist to a major fault."

 

With a furrowed eyebrow, Lapis replied, "What? I know Steven is a pacifist, Bismuth! And I know he can be too forgiving for his own good! But what does that-"

 

"He ever tell you that if you shatter your enemy for  _any_  reason, that makes you just as bad as the Diamonds we're fighting against?"

 

Peridot visibly winced while she struggled to put herself together. This was a rare time when looking to a picture of Steven for solace would actually backfire.

 

"What…?" Lapis was taken aback by this. "But that's… that's ludicrous!"

 

As a long-tormented victim from both sides of the war, she knew fully well the widespread death and destruction the Diamonds had been responsible for, directly or indirectly. She'd never shed a tear for any of them, and Lapis, if she was honest with herself, still wanted to see them shatter for that.

 

"That's what I thought," Bismuth agreed. "Heck, that's still how I feel for the most part. But he is who he is; none of us can change that."

 

Lapis felt herself shaking. "If he  _knew_  just what exactly they've done, how many lives they ended for no reason-"

 

"Black and white morality. I hate that way of thinking."

 

Both Lapis and Bismuth turned to look to Peridot, who regained some of her composure. "I've worked directly under Yellow Diamond. I thought nothing of her actions back when I still lived there, you know. It hasn't been until recently that I looked back on those days, now knowing the truth. I remember witnessing so many executions, both formal and informal. A few times, it even happened to a Peridot who sat next to me in the work station. And the way I reacted to that… I didn't even flinch! I felt nothing while  _I_   _brushed my coworker's gem dust off me_. I just thought about what an annoyance it was when  _I_   _wiped away the pieces from my console_."

 

No one dared to make a sound. Bismuth's jaw dropped, while Lapis looked so disturbed and sickened by the very gory details, she felt like she was going to vomit. Not that she had anything in her to actually do so, but these reactions made Lapis realize there was still a lot she didn't know about Peridot. Then again, she'd be surprised if Peridot told  _anyone_  about this already.

 

"I can't believe you three are the first ones I've told this to." Well, that answered one thing for Lapis. "I didn't even realize this until a couple of weeks ago. I hadn't thought about those days in years, because they didn't mean anything to me back then. I guess it really shouldn't now… but now that I'm seeing my old memories through a new lens…" Peridot only now noticed how devastated her crew was made just by hearing about this.

 

It made Peridot feel a nauseating myriad of emotions, both good and bad. But she was mentally beating herself up over letting this happen. There would be a time for stories later. Right now, she needed to make sure she could trust Lapis and Bismuth as much as they trusted her. She was pretty sure that trust took a nosedive just now.

 

"I apologize for going on that tangent." Peridot willed herself back into professional mode. The tone of her voice was cold and low-key, similar to how she spoke when she first inspected the warp pad on Earth. It was no wonder old memories were flooding back. But Peridot was certain this didn't mean she was regressing back into her old ways. It just bothered her immensely that she had to keep her voice so eerily subdued just to make sure she could do her job right now. "I shouldn't have steered the conversation so far off topic. Let me answer your question properly, Bismuth."

 

Now Bismuth wasn't so sure she wanted it anymore. "Th-that's fine, Peridot. I didn't mean to push-"

 

"I repeat,  _let me answer your question_ ," Peridot forcefully insisted. She had raised her voice to get Bismuth to back down. "Would I shatter an opponent who would kill Steven Universe if I did anything otherwise? Yes. My answer is yes."

 

Bismuth sadly nodded. "Even if-"

 

"Yes, Bismuth. Even if he hates me for doing it. Even if he never forgives me. Even if he deems me a monster who should stay bubbled in the Temple indefinitely, I'd do it all over again every time. The way I see it, I can deal with Steven casting me out if it means he'll be able to live his life. He'll still be surrounded with a loving family and wonderful friends, even if I'm no longer part of it. I'll readily take that over Steven perishing while retaining his presumably high opinion of me. Does that satisfy your inquiry?"

 

"I… ah, yeah. Sure, it does. I'm sorry I went there." Bismuth bowed her head, no doubt ashamed how this got so far off the rails.

 

"If you're wondering about me, my answers are roughly the same," Lapis supplied, just barely talking above her normal speaking voice. "We'll deal with the consequences when we return to Earth."

 

"Right," Bismuth agreed. She looked over to where a very, very quiet Greg sat. "You doin' okay over there, Greg?"

 

Even he was at a loss for words. Still, he nodded with a nervous smile on his face while giving the thumbs-up.

 

"I believe we've been dealing with semantics long enough," Peridot said, the chill in her voice still present. "Unfortunately, I believe that's all the planning we can do ahead of time with so little information going in. I swear to the both of you, I will be a better and more consistent leader the moment we set foot into Homeworld. And I  _will_  keep you both updated as we keep moving forward. I hate plans revolving around making things up as you go, but this time, it's unavoidable. I hope you two can understand."

 

"It's not like you can help it," Lapis replied. "I'll do my best to follow your lead. For what it's worth, Peridot… I still think you're more fit for the position than I am."

 

"And I'm no better," Bismuth chimed in. "Looks like we still got an hour and a half to go. Wanna de-stress and just have a little fun before we infiltrate heavily guarded hostile enemy territory?"

 

Peridot just stared silently at the two for a few very awkward moments. Her expression was unreadable, so it was impossible for either of her teammates to tell whether she was frozen in indecision or… in a much worse state than before.

 

Lapis tried to step up and break the silence. "Hey, Per-"

 

"Here's what we're going to do until we reach our destination."

 

Lapis stepped back in surprise, and Bismuth kept her mouth shut. Somehow, Peridot had an even colder voice, but one that sounded less subdued but much more authoritative. She walked over to a panel full of buttons and pressed one.

 

Before either could make heads or tails of what she had in mind, Bismuth and Lapis were suddenly both trapped under a glass chamber. It was wide enough to accommodate for both gems, but only barely. The two were forced closer together than either of them ever wanted to be. Of course, their focus was fully on Peridot right now than each other.

 

Their young leader did not turn her attention towards them right away; instead, she went for her tablet. It was within reaching distance, so it was scooped up effortlessly while Peridot was revealed to have some sort of microphone in her hands. She then glanced to her side to see Lapis angrily banging against the glass with Bismuth looking more hurt and confused; she had a single hand resting against the glass. Lapis definitely looked and felt betrayed; even worse, she seemed to have a good idea why Peridot would pull something like this; that knowing glare told it all.

 

"Both of you, calm down," Peridot spoke into the mic. Both of them looked up and heard the voice coming from the ceiling instead of directly in front of the one who spoke those chilling words. Both Lapis and Bismuth's cries were unheard, and Peridot simply shook her head. "Until I flip this switch, no one will hear either of you. And stop trying to make a scene, Lapis. You know you aren't going to break out of triple diamond-grade plexiglass. Now shut up and listen closely; I will  _not_  repeat myself."

 

That order was obeyed rather quickly. Peridot figured she should make sure she didn't scare Greg into hurling himself out the airlock, but he remained seated where he'd been the whole time. He definitely knew what was going on, but was too afraid to say anything against the gem he just had a heartwarming talk with last night. The same gem he saw care for Pumpkin like a loving mother. The Peridot of last night and the Peridot of today still looked the same, but otherwise seemed like two completely different gems.

 

"It's okay, PUU. You've behaved yourself, so there's no need to punish you. If it's okay, I'd like to ask you a favor, though."

 

It was haunting even hearing Peridot say that gross nickname, but Greg was quick to nod and try not to sound completely scared out of his wits. "U-uh, sure thing. What can I do ya for?"

 

Peridot gestured over to the trapped Lapis and Bismuth. "I'm not sure if you picked up on it since we first came together, but there has been some heavily repressed animosity between these two. Or more accurately, I should say Lapis is being a passive-aggressive clod, thinking I'm not catching her throw dirty looks at Bismuth every chance she gets. I have no idea what this could be about, and I already gave Lapis her chance to air it out earlier here. This is a loose thread we are  _not_  leaving hanging when we infiltrate Homeworld. I will not allow for pettiness like this to get in the way of me doing what I need to do for this mission. If this situation is not sorted out by the time we land, I'll go on my own if I must."

 

She then looked to Greg. "I only ask you to do some babysitting for me. Flip this switch," she instructed, pointing to the switch next to the single glowing button she had pressed earlier. "And you will be able to hear them. Obviously, you can communicate with this." She held out her mic and placed it in Greg's hands.

 

"O-oh, that's it? That shouldn't be too bad…" No way was Greg going to risk being defiant now. "You, uh, got other important stuff to do right now, I guess?" He couldn't think why else Peridot wouldn't indulge on watching this; it felt like something even her normal self would do.

 

"It's of extreme importance," Peridot assured the man. "I will be in my own isolation chamber nearby, timed to open the moment we enter Homeworld's atmosphere. Like their chamber, it is soundproofed, so you will not hear from me, or vice-versa. Unlike their chamber, the glass in mine is only mirrored from one side, so you will not see me, but I can see you if I choose to."

 

"I get it. Privacy, right?" Greg still nodded along, not wanting to incur Peridot's wrath, even though he was clearly very much in good graces with her.

 

"Precisely." Finally, Peridot let herself smile just a little. "And of course I trust you, but I don't trust Lapis to let me have that when I need it most. So, to discourage any temptation to start banging at my chamber and hanging over it like some wild, rabid organic, I'll activate a disruptor field that covers a meter-wide radius. I will be able to see you if I so choose, so if an emergency is happening, simply behave as such so I will be inclined to come out prematurely to deal with the situation."

 

"Right, right. Uh… what's the visual cue that'll definitely catch your eye and make you realize we're probably about to die out there?"

 

Peridot blinked at the man. "Mmm… run back and forth within my visual radius, flail your arms like crazy, and scream. That's a natural way for an organic to react in a life-threatening situation, right?"

 

"Uh… yeah, those're the telltale signs! Either that or a crazy dude…" Greg decided not to bring it up, but he was surprised to hear Peridot finally sound more like herself right at that moment. In an instant, her voice was back at its normal pitch, her volume no longer at a murmur, and there was a tone of intrigue and amusement in her words. "By the way, did you want some kind of report on these two once they start talking…?"

 

"Hm… not this time," Peridot decided, as she started to punch in the settings for her own chamber. "My interest in the newest chapter of the sea-beast's drama has expired, and I'm 99% certain whatever her deal is, is completely irrelevant to the mission or our team's cohesion. Had that been the case, we would have seen Lapis try to drown Bismuth well before this point."

 

There returned her childish glee and mischievous bratty inflections. Subdued, but no longer suppressed.

 

"Okay, then," Greg decided to end that topic before it started; he wasn't wild about having to sit through Lapis and Bismuth arguing as it was. "Hey, Peridot?"

 

Peridot just about hit the deploy button before hearing that. She turned her head to face Steven's father. "Uh-huh?"

 

"Just… lettin' you know you can always talk to me if you've got a problem, okay?" Greg wouldn't mention the fact that he'd become increasingly concerned for her wellbeing,  _especially_  during that conversation once the topic of her hypothetical death came along. It went entirely downhill from there. As he told her before, he had no intention of pressuring her and would not make her talk unless she wanted to. She was right up there with Amethyst when it came to that talkative nature, as it turned out, but there were still certain subjects she kept her mouth sealed about.

 

"Right; I remember you said that the other day ago… it's much appreciated, and I will definitely consider it when I return. Just let me know I owe you one for doing me this favor, okay? I'll see you in 95 Earth minutes!"

 

"Will do!" Greg smiled and waved as the chamber was deployed and slowly descended to surround Peridot and the seat she sat in. Obviously, she had some business to conduct on her tablet that she didn't want prying eyes to see, but that was her business and hers alone, he knew.

 

With that, he let out an exhausted sigh and turned to the ladies behind him. Greg flipped the switch per Peridot's instructions, and sure enough, he could quickly hear the two grumbling inside their cozy captivity.

 

"Okay, Lapis, Bismuth: your friend Greg is here!" he said into the microphone. "You're coming in loud and clear now."

 

" _Greg!_  Get us out of here!" Lapis yelled; it sounded more like an order rather than a plea. "That little imp had no right-"

 

"Hun, you don't play it like this," Bismuth advised. "I'm mad too, but maybe it'd be in your best interest to not go off on the man who holds the keys to our freedom."

 

 _"I don't need to hear that from you!"_  There was pure venom laced in the aquatic gem's voice.

 

Greg could see why Peridot wanted to get this out of the way, now. Lapis' attitude was downright  _toxic_. "Listen, we can make this quick and painless if you just do what your leader wants," he pointed out. "And don't think I'm taking sides here; Peridot only got the bare-bones details of what you two talked about before she reformed. I saw the whole exchange, remember? You were rude to her from the start, Lapis. But you never really explained your behavior. You told Peridot about how you didn't want to participate in this mission, but you didn't tell her the real issue that held you up."

 

"B-because we don't have time for that! Your son and his friends have been waiting for our help for nearly three days, now!" Lapis cried out. "And this Bismuth has made it clear that she won't own up to what she's done!"

 

To this, Greg could only let out a tired sigh. He figured the decades of basically living with the Crystal Gems would have better prepared him to deal with a conflict like this. There certainly was no shortage of that with Pearl and Amethyst, and on the odd occasion, Garnet would have some kind of hang-up she didn't handle well. But these two weren't really like the Crystal Gems he'd come to know.

 

Sure, they were both involved with the gem war and the rebellion, but for completely different reasons. Both were loners; again, for different reasons. Lapis was starting to recover and have something resembling a life of peace with companionship, but the relapse seemed to have set her a few steps back. Bismuth has been hidden in Lion's mane for thousands of years, with no one even trying to find her because Rose lied about her fate. Finally, she had a chance at living her life anew, and less than a day later came the post-wedding battle that put them all on this course in the first place.

 

Life had not been kind to either of them, Greg could tell. He just wished there was a way they could build something off from that. But he wasn't exactly his son when it came to bringing people and gems alike together.

 

"Lapis, there's still more than an hour to go before we can do anything about my son, sorry to say," Greg pointed out. "Peridot wanted you to get past this so it wouldn't come up again at a bad time. And like it or not, until you find Steven and the gang, you two are gonna  _have_  to work together."

 

"And Lapis, we're not gonna get anywhere until you give me somethin' more specific than "you know what you did", you know?" Bismuth tried her best to stay neutral here; she really didn't hold ill will against her fellow gem and did her best to co-exist with her. But this finally seemed to be the breaking point.

 

A dark chuckle escaped Lapis' lips before she furiously pointed at Bismuth. "This… this is rich.  _You_  started it all. The moment of my life that went on a never-ending downward spiral for thousands of years!"

 

Bismuth rolled her eyes. "Yes, you made that much very clear back on the beach while we waited for Peri," she said. "But who exactly are you helping here by skirting around the subject, hm?"

 

No one. Lapis knew that. She never wanted to think about this part of her life ever again; that was the problem. "You'll be dragging me down to relive those horrible memories  _again_ … because you're too  _dense_  to understand what you did to me!"

 

Greg was on a fast track to losing his patience. He was glad Bismuth was compliant, but it didn't mean much if Lapis refused to communicate. "For crying out loud, Lapis! You just listened to that  _really_  messed up story Peridot shared with you all, and you can't bring yourself to open yourself up to others STILL?!"

 

Bismuth was glad Greg brought that up; a pity she hadn't thought to. "He's right. I saw it; you looked  _sick_  after hearing that. Peridot's too young to know what thousands of years of just  _living_  is like, never mind living in misery. But if you think about it, doesn't that make it worse for a young gem? It hasn't been long enough for her to make peace with that part of herself, and she's terrified to look back any more than she already has! It's all  _fresh_ _wounds_ , Lapis! Whatever happened between you and me, I don't even remember. You're gonna have to spit it out if you want me to own up to it! So what're you gonna do?"

 

Lapis hadn't thought about it like that. Was that why Peridot shared that disturbingly graphic story of her Homeworld days? Did she plan it like that all along because she knew a stubborn teammate chose to stay wallowing in misery all because they happened upon a teammate she had a bad history with?

 

She thought she had known her former roomie very thoroughly. Lapis could tell she was still bitter over her decision to flee with all of their belongings. And that talk the two had moments before leaving Earth… Lapis already knew this Steven situation had legitimately messed with more than just Peridot's emotional state. In spite of all that, Peridot wasn't succumbing; if anything, she grew stronger every time she withstood these attacks.

 

There was a good chance her leadership capability would skyrocket once they made it to Homeworld. There was an equally good chance Peridot just might turn into a renegade killing machine until she found her center of gravity. Like Greg, Lapis could tell just by listening to the subtle shifts in her voice and how she spoke that Peridot definitely wasn't keeping herself together as well as she claimed. It was so random and inconsistent, on top of that. No one could identify a symptom if there was no rhyme or reason to them. The only thing that Lapis knew was a constant was Steven.

 

Maybe she would get better, or she could possibly get even worse. Lapis just knew they couldn't go on much longer like this. Taking that into account, and seeing that Bismuth had been very civil to her despite Lapis knowing she didn't deserve that courtesy, she took a deep breath, opened her eyes, and faced her larger companion.

 

"I… …. _f-fine!_ If that's what it takes!"

 

Bismuth and Greg quietly let out of sigh of relief.

 

"I was caught in the middle of a battle featuring  _your Rebellion_ ," Lapis began; her tone dripped with venom. "I wanted no part in it. I was just visiting… and in an instant, became an innocent bystander who became collateral damage."

 

That alone explained so much for Bismuth. For being a die-hard warrior for Rose Quartz to thwart oppression, getting an innocent civilian trapped within it was… guilt-inducing, to say the least.

 

"I tried,  _really_  tried, to make it out of there peacefully," Lapis recounted. Part of her was pleased to see Bismuth finally understanding the implications. "And I nearly did. But out of nowhere… I was poofed by an attack from behind. I did nothing to provoke an attack… I was just trying to  _leave!_  But instead, at the last second, I was ambushed. And the culprit?  _You_ ,  _Bismuth_."

 

Greg looked to Bismuth, shocked. Bismuth herself needed a moment to recollect her thoughts. She really didn't remember doing this…

 

"Let me guess. You're going to tell me it was some other Bismuth?"

 

"I was Rose Quartz's finest solider," a solemn Bismuth stated. "I was there for every battle… if there were other Bismuths in our ranks, I would have known. It had to have been me…"

 

Lapis leaned forward to bark out at her fellow Peri-prisoner. "But still, you're going to feign ignorance of what you did to me?! Do you have any idea what I've had to live through due to your actions?!"

 

"Not yet, but I'm sure I'll hear of them eventually," Bismuth calmly answered; her positive attitude slowly made a comeback. "I'm sincerely sorry, Lapis Lazuli. You getting into this mess just because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time… felt like crack right in the gem. Try and understand… I've engaged in thousands of battles. Hundreds of thousands, even. I was the field commander. It's very hard to pluck one specific moment from my memory back then. And since it's been this long… everything starts to blur together. But what I do know is that I never went after non-hostile gems. That goes against my code of honor; everything I stand for. If you were posing no threat, the only reason I could have attacked you is… mistaken identity."

 

"So that's it?" Lapis crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Her rage seemed to have been mildly quelled. "Mistaken identity… seriously? That's all it took to ruin my life…?"

 

Bismuth frowned down at her. "Lapis, there are countless gems  _who_ _lost their lives_  for less than that. I'm sorry I started a nasty chain reaction in your life, but I couldn't have seen that coming. I can't change what I did, and I'm sorry for that. But…"

 

She reached out and gently placed a hand on Lapis' shoulder. The shorter gem turned her head to look her in the eye. She no longer looked angry; just frustrated and unsure of how to move forward from this.

 

"If it'll turn you back into that dry humor wise-crackin' gem who keeps our leader in line, I'll do anything to make it up to you. You probably don't believe me, but I think you're one fine gem for company, Lapis." That elicited a shocked look from the gem she addressed. "And I'd love nothing more than to move past all that crap that happened during war time. What I care about now is gettin' to know you 're in an era of peace, now. "

 

Bismuth paused a bit as she remembered life wasn't exactly that peaceful this very minute. "The fighting we're doing right now is to maintain that peace. And nobody spreads peace and good will quite like Steven Universe, don't you think?"

 

Finally, the tiniest hint of a smile formed on Lapis' lips. "You're not wrong about that," she agreed; her voice sounded much gentler now. "If you want to make this up to me, though…"

 

She looked to the chamber a few feet away that only showed her own reflection. "Help me help her out. I thought Peridot had sorted herself out just before we left Earth, but she's getting harder and harder to read. And I've lived with her."

 

"Aw, Lapi. I was already gonna do that," Bismuth warmly assured her. "I've only known her a few days, but she grows on you like a weed. And I'm with you on her behavior; I think it's more than just the pressure of leading us gettin' to her."

 

"There's one thing I know that's made her so unstable," Lapis mentioned, but cut herself off there. "But I can't say more than that... it's her secret to share. If we do our mission right, that problem will take care of itself. If you don't think helping Peridot's enough to redeem yourself, then make sure you keep us safe when we get out there. You do that, and I'll do my best to cover you, too."

 

"Sounds like a deal." Bismuth offered her hand, which Lapis cautiously took. One handshake later, each gem smiled as the glass chamber around them ascended until it fully disappeared back into the ceiling. Greg, over by the control panel, grinned at the two and gave them a thumbs-up gesture of approval.

 

"I'm really proud of you both," he told them. "That might not mean much coming from a human, but…"

 

"You kiddin' me?" Bismuth asked him. "You're the one who won Rose Quartz's heart, out of thousands of years of contenders for the same honor. You're a man who'll go down in history one day, so I consider your praise an honor!"

 

"And without you, Steven never would have come into our lives," Lapis added. "And I like Steven a lot. You raised him, so I think I need to thank you for teaching him all the right things. At first I thought bringing you with us was a terrible idea, but… I've never been happier to be so wrong!"

 

"You two, honestly…" Greg waved his hand dismissively as he struggled to take all of that glowing praise all at once. "Seriously, I'm feeling a lot more optimistic about our mission."

 

Lapis glanced over to the chamber again. "Let me guess: she didn't tell you what she's doing in there."

 

"You'd be right," Greg affirmed. "Lapis, do you have any idea what she could be doing?"

 

"For once… no; I haven't got a clue," the gem replied. "It's weird now that I think about it. Peridot's been such an open book until she reformed."

 

Bismuth tilted her head. "Just throwing it out there… you think she's going out of her way to hide her inherent weaknesses, so we won't think less of her as a leader?"

 

Lapis nodded. "That's part of it, at least. Let's just hope she gets her act together when we land." She looked to the screen that displayed their destination details. 45 minutes remained until they reached Homeworld's atmosphere. The planet itself seemed to be visible from a great distance. "So, she's not coming out until that timer runs out, right?"

 

"Mm-hmm. And it looks like we still have enough time to do what you suggested before, Bismuth!"

 

"What's that?" Bismuth looked to Greg, who walked over to his seat. "Oh, you mean when I said we oughta have ourselves some fun?"

 

"You bet!" Greg grabbed his guitar. "Music's always been the best remedy for me. How about you two join me and try it out for yourself? You never know if you'll ever get another chance at this."

 

Bismuth approached the man. "Ooh, I'm in! I'm always in for trying something new before I'm out there in the battlefield again, takin' care of Bismuth!"

 

For the first time, Lapis let herself openly chuckle at her teammate's gimmick. "Well, it beats staring at a mirror tube or the horrible planet coming into view. I'm in."

 

Greg smirked. "I think you just gave me an idea what song to play…"

* * *

 

_"And I'll be takin' care of Bismuth! Everyday!"_

 

_"Takin' care of Bismuth! Every way!"_

 

_"I've been takin' care of Bismuth! It's all mine!"_

 

_"Takin' care of Bismuth and working overtime!"_

 

 

 

Peridot had no idea what she was in for when she finally emerged from her chamber, but this? This was the very last thing, of  _all_  ideas ever, she thought she'd ever see.

 

"Am I cracked, or is this real life?" she asked, sounding… appropriately weirded out.

 

"Peridot! Welcome back!" Bismuth greeted. "You ain't cracked, sweetie. We're just tryin' out all the new things we can before we do what we came here to do!"

 

Peridot didn't look all that impressed, but she had more of a "whatever" vibe to her demeanor opposed to the strict authoritarian she had been before she went into the chamber.

 

"Whatever makes you two happy with no intent to crack each other," she conceded. There was maybe half the volume of her voice than normal, but it wasn't due to her trying to adopt some new persona. It sounded like a dry throat.

 

"You don't sound so good," Greg noticed immediately. Call it a parental instinct. "Need something to drink?"

 

Lapis recognized the symptoms of strained vocal chords in her former roommate as well. "Here, we can use some of my water-" She started to open it, then sighed when she caught the scent of the water she gathered. "Oh, I forgot this is seawater. Sorry."

 

"I was gonna say gargling salt water helps with sore throats, but seawater is pretty gross," Greg admitted. "No worries, though. I've got plenty of drinking water."

 

He took out a small bottle of water, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to Peridot. "Here you go."

 

Peridot accepted it and promptly took a drink. "Wow, thanks… I feel better already."

 

A tone emitted from the system as the ship inched ever closer to Homeworld, which ominously took up more of the view.

 

"And not a moment too soon. You all should take a seat," Peridot advised her crew. The water definitely helped soothe her throat; her voice still sounded a little weak, but there was an audible improvement. "I'll need to switch the controls back to manual in about a minute."

 

The others returned to their seats. There were plenty of places to sit, but the interior was built with the intent on having enough room for everyone they rescue added in. So while the ship was quite roomy now, it was bound to get cramped on the return trip. Everyone opted to sit close together, mostly to keep by close to Peridot, where they had the best view of their destination.

 

"So, it finally happened. You've rambled on and on so much, you nearly lost your voice," Lapis stated. She was speaking in jest, but she was also genuinely curious about something. "Though your voice sounded just fine before you snubbed us. How-"

 

"Seriously, Lapis?" Peridot didn't bother to look back. "Just shut up and enjoy the view like everybody else." She took another swig of her water bottle, to which Lapis just frowned and huffed at.

 

It turned out Peridot didn't just say that to blow Lapis off. Greg was in awe, but that was to be expected. Bismuth was equally mesmerized, but for different reasons. Everyone in the ship knew full well they were about to enter a wicked world, but it was hard to resist taking in the visual of approaching a planet and skirting the edge of its atmosphere and outer space.

 

Lapis couldn't bring herself to enjoy this for aesthetic reasons; all this brought back was bad memories. While Bismuth held the same sentiments about Homeworld as her fellow gems, it had been a long,  _long_  time since she had seen her world of origin.

 

Gradually, the darkness of space and the sea of stars that adorned it began to fade out. Light poured in from below, which made everyone but Peridot squint their eyes shut while adjusting to its overwhelming presence. For the pilot herself, well… it was proof that her visor was of  _some_  use.

 

"We've officially entered Homeworld's atmosphere," she confirmed. "Commencing PeriLuck's descent in ten seconds." She briefly looked to the others, who were just now getting their eyes adjusted to the atmospheric shift. "Better grab on to something," she advised them. "I'd rather not have any of you crash your skulls into the ceiling. We've got no time to deal with concussions."

 

No time for snappy remarks; everyone strapped in and clung to something sturdy before the intense, shaking descent. Lapis blindly reached for the sturdiest thing within reach and clung on, only to freeze up and realize she had just clung to Bismuth's arm by mistake.

 

"S-sorry," she muttered, but Bismuth had her pause before she leaped away in embarrassment.

 

"That's fine! I'm probably better to grab on than anything else during a landing," she assured the flustered Lapis, who ultimately chose to keep herself attached to Bismuth for the duration of the rough descent.

 

A little over a minute later, their elevation was low enough for Peridot to shift the ship's position back to where it was before, where at that point, everyone else released their holds and breathed a sigh of relief.

 

"Don't think I could have asked for better out of a rush job," a much cheerier Peridot said. "You did an amazing job constructing the parts, Bismuth. If I didn't know better, I never would've guessed this ship is your first."

 

"Aw, how sweet of you to say." Bismuth was beyond flattered. "But your design specs and engineering had a big part in this too, so don't sell yourself short."

 

Peridot smirked. "Who said I was?" Both Greg and Bismuth shared a hearty laugh at that.

 

A moment later, various columns, and spires became visible, and soon after some remains of various Kindergartens. The sight-seeing became much less pleasant all of a sudden. Dreary colors and dead, overused remains of land and rock formations sucked all the joy out of the ship.

 

"Never thought I'd be seeing this place ever again," Bismuth muttered quietly. "Looks way more worn down than it did when I left."

 

"I never wanted to see this place again," Lapis added. "Looks like Peridot's right about there not being any more open water resources. It makes this planet look all the more barren… and dead."

 

"Gotta admit, this is really depressing to look at," Greg muttered.

 

"It's good that you all feel that way," Peridot spoke up. "This should be all the more motivation for you not to screw up and leave anyone behind before we leave. Because if we  _ever_  have to come back to this cavity-infested filth pit after this…"

 

"You made your point," Lapis sighed out. "How far away are we from where the Diamonds are?"

 

"It should be a little under 10 minutes before we reach Facet 2. It's not exactly "close" to where we need to be, but Homeworld's method of transport continues to be much more advanced than Earth's. We just need to play it cool when we cross by the facility I primarily worked in. Which reminds me…"

 

Peridot set the controls back to autopilot and began conducting some kind of search on the view screen.

 

"Reminds you what?" asked Bismuth.

 

"I intended to look up Homeworld's Most Wanted list. You definitely won't be on it, Bismuth," Peridot assured her. "I just need to see how much Lapis and I will need to stay out of the public eye- wait, what?  _Really?_ Hahah, that's a riot!"

 

"Now what?" Lapis felt she'd deeply regret asking her superior anything one of these days.

 

"They took me off the list!" Peridot cheered. "But  _Jasper_  is still on it, can you believe that?!"

 

"Too bad Homeworld will never know you're the one who incapacitated her," Lapis teased. "Are you seeing me on there at all, by the way?"

 

Peridot shook her head. "I'm not seeing any Lapis Lazulis listed here at all, let alone you. Do you know for a fact you were on the wanted list in the first place?"

 

"I wouldn't know; Homeworld doesn't exactly deliver news to Earth, so…"

 

Peridot let out a heavy sigh of relief. "I guess Yellow Diamond getting even with me on Earth was enough reason to have me dropped. Giant clod probably thought she took me out for good."

 

"Either way, this is good news for you guys, isn't it?" Greg inquired.

 

" _Extremely_  good news," Peridot answered with overwhelmed enthusiasm. "I means I won't have to lure some other Peridot in an alley and pacify her to get her limb enhancers. I can just do things the legit way and no one will bat an eye. Heck, I could return right back to my old quadrant, to my old  _console_ , even, and no one would notice or care!"

 

"Looks like PeriLuck's giving us good fortune all around," Bismuth surmised. "Say, are they gonna be okay about me and Lapi followin' you? No suspicion or anything?"

 

"You should be fine for the most part," Peridot assured. "It won't be exclusively be me-wannabes we'll see in the area. Plenty of different gems with different tasks have to take shortcuts through different branches to optimize their travel time."

 

She let out a sigh. "Though I'll bet we'll see more Peridots around than any other gem; Facet 2 alone wouldn't be able to handle all of the maintenance on Homeworld… so we were mass-produced like crazy to make sure supply can meet up with demand. It's why Era 2s like me exist, even if we're inferior to our Era 1 counterparts in every aspect."

 

"Who cares about which era you were made in? You're still you, Peridot. A better "you" doesn't exist; none of those Era 1s have the personality and heart you've got," Greg adamantly told her. "You're way ahead of your kind as I see it."

 

That made Peridot's lip quiver a bit while she held back on shedding a tear. "That's… definitely something your offspring would say if he was here," she said sincerely. "You taught him well, PUU. I reward you with my utmost respect."

 

"We'll make sure Steven knows how much you've really helped us out here, Greg," Lapis promised. "Just wait a little bit longer…"

 

Greg chuckled and wiped back a tiny tear of his own. "Well, I'm honored you brought me along. You ladies are the finest gems I've ever had the pleasure to work with. Now cut it out before you get me all choked up!"

 

Minutes later, the PeriLuck made its way to what looked like a proper intergalactic metropolis. In the distance, a bright pink structure that looked like a pair of human legs towered over nearly everything else - the sole exception being the pure white bust-shaped silhouette sat even further in the distance.

 

"You see that?" Bismuth pointed out the legs. "That's what Steven and the others traveled in to get here. So we know where we oughta head once we land."

 

" _That's_  a ship?" Peridot wasn't sure to make of it. "I'd say something about that improbable design… but this ship was made from flying arms. And I did have that hand once upon a time…"

 

Lapis squinted to see if she could pick up any other details, but they were simply too far away at the moment. "It would be too risky to land closer to that area, I guess. This place is already taunting us…"

 

"You'd be surprised how efficient the public transport system is here." Peridot briefly looked between her fellow gems and shrugged. "I mean, I'm assuming it either didn't exist or was in its prototype phase in your time. Good thing you don't have to worry about losing your way… you're  _so lucky_ to have me!"

 

The smug, cat-like smile on Peridot's face was endearing, but a cause for concern, as it was a radical departure from her demeanor just over an hour ago.

 

It was just a moment later that a landing site came into a view. The structure it was built around had a bore a label; one in Gem language, naturally. Three of the four Crystal Gem backups could easily read it, at least.

 

2F5L.

 

"There's our starting point. Now we just need to figure out where to land…" Peridot was glad air traffic was so minimal this time of day in Homeworld; her ship stuck out like a sore thumb and likely would have brought about unwanted attention.

 

"There's a lot of gates around here, Lapis noted. "But why aren't people using that one?" She pointed over where, indeed, one intergalactic airport gate was closed with no signs of life or spacecrafts to be seen.

 

"Ooh! Good eye, Lapis!" Peridot immediately adjusted her steering and shifted the controls to prepare for landing. "If it's not being used, it's obviously out of order. A defective gate means no one will be around until it's fixed. And I'll look into that the second we make landfall. Lapis, you'd better start filling up your portable water reserves. Bismuth, suit up."

 

The PeriLuck finally landed in a rather strategic spot, placed in a spot where it wouldn't be visible from all angles save for one. Lapis and Bismuth did their last-minute preparations while Peridot got out of her seat and invited Greg to take her place in it. "Right, I promised the Chauffeur a crash course. I designed the console myself, so this should be a simple task for you."

 

Greg nodded and looked down at the console, not looking confident at all. "All those buttons, though…"

 

"For your services, we're talking a 4-button game here," Peridot assured him. "See? They're a little bigger than the rest and highlighted right next to the gear shifters."

 

"R-right. I think I see 'em now…"

 

"So listen closely: the green button is your "on" button. Blue button shuts it down. White button is a quick boot-up. Hopefully you won't need it, but if we're getting chased out of the building on the way back, we can't afford to wait for the engines to warm up. The technicolor button down there is the emergency liftoff initiator. You'll shoot up to space in a matter of seconds. And if the Diamonds are right on our butts, that's our only chance to outspeed them. Any questions?"

 

"Sounds pretty straightforward to me," Greg answered, nodding. "By the way, I know you were eager to use Lion, but…"

 

"I knew there had to be a catch," Peridot grumbled. "What is it?"

 

Greg looked to Lion, who had woken up from his nap and taken a bit of a walk to stretch his legs. He otherwise looked indifferent.

 

"He's not known to be  _consistent_ , is the thing," Greg explained. "Even Steven has trouble sometimes getting Lion to do what he wants." That reminded Peridot how Steven had to bribe the furry organic just to take them to the Moon. "But he gets on well with Connie, so I'm sure you can use him without Steven. It's just… not a guarantee he'll warp you right to Steven."

 

Peridot narrowed her eyes at the pink beast. "So our gambit just turned into a gamble.  _Fantastic_. I can justify Lapis and Bismuth following me around, but Lion's gonna draw  _all_ of the attention."

 

"That's too bad," Lapis remarked, clearly let down. "Maybe there's a reason he won't do it."

 

"What, did you think of one?" asked Bismuth, who now donned a full-body suit of steel.

 

Lapis shrugged. "Kind of… since we know Steven's most likely with or near the Diamonds, if we warp to him right now and they're  _with_ him, that's going to…"

 

"Trigger a full-blown massacre right from the get-go," Peridot finished. "We also can't be sure that Steven's with his full group right now. Connie might be elsewhere… the Crystal Gems could be bubbled away in a throne room for all we know.  _Gyaaaah!_  Did we seriously bring Lion along for nothing, then?!"

 

"I wouldn't count him out," Greg replied. He looked so purely optimistic. "Not totally. Try and appeal with him for a minute, why don't you? He cares a lot for Steven and Connie. I figure he'd be chomping at the bit to follow you, but maybe he's trying to tell you that warping's a no-go for now. There might be a better time to do it later."

 

"Except he can't follow us and  _we're not coming back here without Steven and the rest,_ " Peridot emphasized with frustration. "How are we gonna know when we can use him to warp? How will he find us on his own?!"

 

"Like I said, give him a good talk," Greg advised. "He loves Steven, and so do all of you. Prove that to him, and he'll come right when you need him. I know Lion stands out a lot, but you'd be surprised how elusive he can be. I'm sure he'll come to your rescue when you least expect it."

 

Reluctantly, Peridot nodded and knelt down to meet Lion at eye level. Just then, Pumpkin came out and scampered to them both. "Oh-  _Pumpkin!_  I can't believe I almost forgot to say goodbye to you. C'mere, we need to have a talk with your best buddy Lion."

 

With Pumpkin comfortably cradled in Peridot's arms, Lion finally turned his attention to the pair and seemed to regard them with some interest.

 

"H-hey, Lion. I want to thank you for giving Pumpkin a cozy place to sleep these past few nights." Peridot figured it would be best to open up with some sincere gratitude. When it came to animals, Peridot was something of a hit-or-miss case. She hoped with all her heart that this time, she could knock it out of the park.

 

"But, look… there's something we need to talk about. Reach a mutual understanding… about Steven, you know? Uh, let's make this simple, 'kay? Can you raise your right paw for yes and your left paw for no?"

 

Pride welled up within Peridot when she felt Lion raise his right paw and briefly and rest it against her right hand. "G-great. Great start, then! Lion, I need to know if Lapis is right, and you can tell that now's a bad time to warp straight to Steven. Is it really not an option now?"

 

Up came the left paw. That was immensely disappointing… but Peridot had to take it in stride. It was better to know for sure than dwelling on what-ifs.

 

"Is it because of the Diamonds?" The left paw went down, and the right came up again.

 

"I see… thank you." More than anything, Peridot was just relieved to get confirmation through Lion that Steven was  _alive_. "Um, I'm about to head off and rescue Steven, you see. But it'll take a while. I just wanted to know… clearly you can sense him from a distance. You'd come to him immediately if his life was in danger, wouldn't you?"

 

Once again, right paw. "How about us? I really want to take you with us, but you won't be safe that way. If for any reason we get cornered with no way out, will you come and rescue us like you would with Steven?"

 

This time, Lion didn't raise either paw. He just stared intensely into Peridot's shielded eyes, as if he was passing judgment on the little gem. Peridot would be lying if she said she didn't feel a great deal of pressure and fear. Lion did nothing conclusive after his study of Peridot, but he lean forward and sniff at Peridot's chest. That, of course, made her squeak and stumble back. She would have covered herself with her arms in defense, but they were still occupied with Pumpkin now. So she had to settle for holding Pumpkin closer to her body, but upon doing so, felt something foreign yet familiar press up against her skin.

 

"Oh…!" Peridot figured it out. Quickly, she balanced Pumpkin for her left arm to keep her held up while she quickly dug into her uniform with her right hand and pulled out the picture of herself and Steven. She quickly presented it to Lion. "You wanted to see this, didn't you?"

 

Indeed, it was. Lion scrutinized the picture, then shifted his glance to Peridot and back again to the picture. It was like airport security checking a "randomly selected" passenger's ID. The longer this went on, the more Peridot's smile faded into a shaky pout of worry and desperation. Her eyes pleaded him to believe in her, but it seemed he wanted her to spit out the words he already knew were in her heart.

 

"Wh-what else do you want from me?" Peridot quietly asked. "You're obviously more intelligent than the average Panthera leo… I, I really shouldn't have to explain this to you!"

 

Lion was not impressed. Peridot would have banged her fists on the floor in anger if she didn't have Pumpkin with her… that gave her an idea. She held up her beloved pet for Lion to judge.

 

"You love Pumpkin, don't you, Lion? I've seen you two get along well a lot lately. I-I mean, why else would Pumpkin prefer to sleep in your mane over me? You're going to make Pumpkin  _really sad_  if you don't help me in helping Steven…"

 

That wasn't what Lion wanted to hear. He was about to readjust himself and just fall asleep right in front of Peridot before she screeched,  _"HEY, WAIT!_ _D-don't, please don't!_ _"_  Now she was on the verge of tears. "Y-you're kind of a jerk, you know? You've been watching us work day-in and day-out to make it this far. I know you've seen me with this picture, Lion. You wouldn't have made me bring it out if you didn't…"

 

That seemed to be winning Lion over again, as he paid full attention to Peridot.

 

"Tell me you already know… why I needed this," Peridot pleaded. She was rewarded with… a left paw. " _Rrrrghghh_ _!_ You  **SUCK!** "

 

Her right hand covered her mouth immediately. Quiet gasps were heard from the three onlookers. Peridot didn't dare utter another word while the picture quietly slipped out of her hand, and Pumpkin had slid onto her lap.

 

Lion stood up; he was easily taller than a previously-kneeling, now sitting Peridot who had frozen up in terror. She offered no resistance when Lion started to make steps towards her, which prompted Pumpkin to flee from her caretaker's lap. Peridot's balance was once again compromised, as she fell back further. Her right hand still covered her mouth; she was  _not_  speaking of her own volition again after that screw-up. All she had propping up her body was her left elbow. No one else was really sure what to make of what was going on, other than that Peridot must have pissed Lion off  _badly_  with that outburst.

 

But finally, Peridot was given a bit of a break. Lion angled his ear by Peridot's face and nudged it against her lip-sealing hand. It only took a moment for Peridot to catch on to what Lion wanted from her, and let out a huge sigh of relief when she removed her right hand from her mouth. She carefully scooted herself to sit upright again before she bent over and cupped her mouth against his ear and started to whisper to the pastel-colored feline.

 

Surprisingly, Peridot's words were heard by no one other than Lion. They quickly understood the implications and occupied themselves with other preparations while their young leader spent a couple of minutes spilling her heart out to Steven's pet. A very obvious green blush marred her face when Peridot finally finished up, and Lion rewarded her with a lick to her left cheek, which prompted a giggle out of the diminutive gem.

 

"Haha-okay, okay! I take it you're going to help us!" Peridot thanked Lion and gave him a quick hug before pulling herself to her feet. She tried her best to regain her composure, but that blush hadn't fully faded away yet. Lapis and Bismuth were in a silent agreement to just let her be this time.

 

"S-so, is everybody ready?" Peridot looked around the interior of her ship. Greg was in the pilot's seat with all of the defensive gadgets in the seat beside him. He smiled warmly and gave her a thumbs-up. Already standing by the hatch, Bismuth and Lapis smiled at her and silently nodded in unison.

 

"Great!" Peridot went to snatch her tablet, which she would no doubt need in place of the limb enhancers. She messed around with it a bit while she strapped it to her arm. "Just gotta back up these files really quick- annnnd done." She approached her fellow gems. "I'm not planning on losing this on the battlefield, but you can never be too careful."

 

It was finally time. With heartfelt best wishes and promises that Steven and the others would be with them the next time they met, Bismuth, Lapis, and Peridot walked on Homeworld soil for the first time in a long time. Well, some longer than others.

 

* * *

 

**[ WE'VE GOT NO FEAR, NO DOUBT, ALL-IN, BALLS OUT**

**WE'RE GOING OUT TONIGHT,** **TO KICK OUT EVERY LIGHT**

 **TAKE ANYTHING WE WANT,** **DRINK EVERYTHING IN SIGHT**

**WE'RE GOING TILL THE WORLD STOPS TURNING**

**WHILE WE BURN IT TO THE GROUND TONIGHT… ]**


	4. Divide By Zero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having landed on Homeworld now, Peridot navigates her team through the crowded tunnels in the heart of Homeworld's metropolis. She has a solid plan in mind to trivialize any roadblocks ahead on their way to the Diamonds, but it requires an unpleasant return trip to her past life.

The first thing the Crystal Gems did was inspect the defunct gate and exploit it to make for a quick getaway. Unsurprisingly, Peridot diagnosed the problem within a minute, saying it was an easy fix. Before commencing on fixing the gate (in secret, of course - they didn't want to give the Homeworld citizens a reason to be anywhere near their hiding place), a hidden pressure plate uncovered a hole.

 

The tiny Peridot insisted to do the exploring, and found that it was a simplistic version of the tube transporters that were common in central Homeworld, only this one must have been meant for supplies rather than citizens. The purpose for this was made apparent when the end of the tunnel led Peridot back to the ground level just a few feet away from the PeriLuck. That led to a rather clever escape plan. Now what they knew Steven was still alive with his life not in immediate danger, time could be spared to secure their escape route.

 

It was decided, ultimately, to not fix the gate. In fact, Peridot jammed a screwdriver into the console multiple times just to ensure it wouldn't be operational for a while. The actual escape route would be the secret chute. It really paid off to have a technological prodigy in the team, because it barely took over 5 minutes for the Crystal Gems to repurpose the chute as a direct transport from the bridge straight up into the hatch of the PeriLuck. A quick modification made it so the chute had a strong suction that would quickly take in anyone who stepped inside. It wouldn't be a comfortable landing inside the ship, but that was a small price to pay for efficiency.

 

Now they had a hidden escape route with an added bonus of letting the enemy believe they've chased the rebels into an inescapable corner due to the broken gate that everyone would assume one would try to flee through. Peridot did say misdirection and trickery were her specialty outside of everything else she was so great at.

 

With the assurance that Lion would let them know when it was time to rush to Steven or save them from a surprise ambush and now a very secure exit, Peridot led her fellow Crystal Gems further into the terminal.

 

The structure was very nondescript… ordinary. There was no shortage of corridors lined up among the walls of what was no doubt the main hub area. It was quite the populated area, but no one looked twice at the trio. Unsurprisingly, the vast majority of the gems present here were Peridots - of both eras - which Lapis and Bismuth couldn't stop staring at, until they were nearly caught doing so. Their Peridot stood out flawlessly, being that she was the only Era 2 walking about without limb enhancers.

 

The leader was so thankful to have found such good friends and a happy life on Earth; otherwise the sidelong glances given to her by the nearby passing Peridots would have severely humiliated her. Emboldened with the task of leading the charge to save Steven, and the knowledge of how much she's grown as an individual since the last time she roamed these halls, Peridot felt bigger than any other gem in this facility.

 

"We're not far from my old work station," she calmly told the others. "There's time to spare, so I'm taking this opportunity to make our lives a little easier for the rest of this trip. Any objections?"

 

"Lead the way," Lapis replied.

 

For the time being, it seemed Peridot found a healthy balance between competence and compassion, and she was grateful this happened when it needed to.

 

"We'll follow you anywhere," Bismuth assured her.

 

As they rounded the corner, Peridot spotted one of the two places she needed to hit up. She stopped, and her allies did the same.

 

"Actually, when we get to my work station, you won't actually be able to go in there with me; it's an employee-only kind of deal," Peridot informed them. "For now, at least. I've got a plan and a destination. I'll need something else so I don't get laughed out of there, though. So, Bismuth…"

 

She unstrapped her tablet from her arm and held it out to her towering friend. "Mind holding this for a bit? I won't be long."

 

Bismuth nodded and happily accepted her beloved present from Steven. "No need to worry, now. Go on ahead and do what you gotta do."

 

What she had to do... Peridot nodded and happily marched along to what looked like a specialty store, no bigger than a low-tier kind from a mall. The "feelings" she only used to have for places like this started to morph into full-fledged memories as it felt like Peridot had just been here yesterday. It wasn't a friendly-looking establishment, lined from wall to wall with green accessories… most notably…

 

"I bet you have one real gem of a story on how you lost your limb enhancers," a Peridot at the front desk remarked. A fellow Era 2, nearly matching Peridot to a tee aside from all three points of her hair heavily curved inward. Unlike the full visor 5XG had, this one wore something that more resembled a scouter that only covered her left eye. Peridot turned around and gave the gem a dirty look.

 

"Cut the crap, 9FC," Peridot responded. She had no choice but to suppress her full anger, no matter how badly she wanted to let loose on this particular one. "Maybe if you bothered to apply yourself, you could go out on interplanetary missions and be of  _some_  worth to Yellow Diamond, just like me."

 

It sickened Peridot to even say that last part, but she wasn't about to spit on the good fortune of no longer being on Homeworld's Most Wanted.

 

"Still a shameless suck-up for our Diamond, I see," 9FC noted. "If only more of us had your drive… well, go on ahead, now. I believe I remember your size from last time."

 

Peridot stifled a sigh as she hopped up and strapped her midsection against what looked somewhat like a torture rack from Earth. There were extended panels for each of her four limbs, which were automatically spread out and strapped in. It felt so shameful, yet it fleshed out yet another memory of Peridot's that was little more than a feeling before.

 

That happened the same day she emerged, of course, when she got her original limb enhancers. She had known absolutely nothing back then outside of her basic function, so she couldn't feel ashamed… just indifferent. When it came to the process of attaching the extensions to their tiny limbs, roughly half of the Peridots that emerged from the same Kindergarten expressed varying degrees of discomfort and even pain. The ones that screamed especially loud were shattered on the spot.

 

But 5XG? Even with the vivid details coming back to her, she held the same bored face as before, not even breaking it to flinch.

 

Peridot wasn't sure if that meant she was super-resilient or if she was just that empty as a sentient being. She recalled it took a few brutal shatterings of nearby Peridots for her to develop a sense of self-perseverence, which grew to ambition in the following years.

 

Ambition was what got her assigned to Earth in the first place. It might have even been Peridot first seeing Yellow Diamond and her ambition that really sparked her own, as she dedicated herself to working hard in the hopes that one day Yellow Diamond would notice her. Peridot very nearly admitted that detail to her crew on the trip here; that when all's said and done, she really was indebted to Yellow Diamond for being where she was today.

 

It was the last thing Yellow Diamond wanted to have happened, sure, but sometimes Peridot wondered if events would have played out the same way if some other Peridot had been chosen for the Earth mission.

 

Both Bismuth and Lapis peeked out the store window to see what was going on. They both turned away once 9FC came back carrying a set of limb enhancers. Lapis in particular did not look to be okay with this. She bit her cheek, trying to stifle the triggered frustration that nearly burst out of her when she realized what was happening. Bismuth wanted to ask her what the problem was, but didn't want to make any noise, considering their eavesdropping would be considered suspicious activity if they happened to be noticed.

 

"So, you're really not going to tell me how you lost your old set, 5XG?"

 

"It's not your job to ask questions," Peridot fired back. "You don't see me asking how you turned out to be such a pathetic clod and an embarrassment to our already lowly-regarded kind, now do you?"

 

9FC obviously didn't appreciate that response and felt zero remorse forcing Peridot's right arm to fit into its respective extension. Peridot barely held down the pained squeak that dared to escape her throat, at the cost of being unable to resist wincing in pain this time.

 

"Oh, what's this? 5XG, showing signs of  _pain_ _?_  This is unheard of," 9FC realized with a faint trace of wicked glee on her face. "You had such a reputation for being durable!" She increased the pressure on the right limb, applying it far longer than needed. "Did Earth make you soft, by any chance?"

 

That might as well have been a kick to the gut. This made Peridot all the gladder she committed herself to do  _one_  personal thing here once she got out of this… if she did. She could tell 9FC was deliberately trying to cripple her.

 

She wasn't going to bother begging for her fellow Peridot to stop; she risked letting out a loud cry throughout the terminal: the kind of cry that could get her shattered, just like the fragile ones from her Kindergarten. And it was painfully obvious the Peridot that already had her limb enhancers had no intention of stopping this anytime soon. Her right arm extension was already attached, just not fastened in. Her arm suddenly felt heavy, and she quickly caught on: 9FC had unstrapped her arm from the table just so she could twist it unhindered.

 

"Is this how you apply yourself, hm?!" The extremely sadistic 9FC was hellbent on getting her former coworker to scream and engineer the exact kind of scene Peridot was desperately trying to avoid.

 

Eventually, she got a little bored just working the one limb when there were three yet untouched by what the sinister Peridot thought was just desserts. "I think you just might have outgrown this set, 5XG. It was  _murder_  trying to fit that meaty limb into the socket. Let's see if your left arm will be more… compliant!"

 

Peridot's mouth opened wide, with barely a whisper of a scream escaping the brutal surge of pain coming from the other half of her body. Just as before, her left arm was being forced into the enhancer in the roughest, most unprofessional way possible. The left arm was set free much sooner as well, so 9FC could commence to twisting it much sooner.

 

Her body lurched forward; her lifeless right arm felt more like an anchor tethered to her body. Peridot continued to hold herself back from making any kind of noise; that was exactly what 9FC wanted and beyond not willing to fall for her sabotage scheme, her pride couldn't take giving this sick gem anything more than she was already involuntarily giving her. Now that she was hunched over enough that her hair could hide her face from most angles, she did let herself cry. It was going to happen anyway, but Peridot could tell it wouldn't be until 9FC was set on tearing her legs apart that she'd get to see such a sight. And the arms were definitely more of a priority to mess up; they were everything to a Peridot who could never hope to be anything more than a technician.

 

A Peridot could lose her legs and still perform her basic function if need be the case. But the arms… losing those would be a death sentence.

 

When Lapis and Bismuth dared to look into the window again to see what was taking so long, both were rightfully horrified.

 

"Th-that  _monster_ …!" Lapis hated having to still keep her voice down. This felt like the worst possible time to be doing it. "Bismuth, we can't watch this! We need to stop her!"

 

"And get shattered for busting in on a store neither of us have any business being in for dishin' out vigilante justice?! Trust me, we're gonna put a stop to this, but like or not, we gotta do this the Homeworld way! I think even these tyrants will know how senseless this is." Bismuth spotted an Era 1 Peridot in the distance, and another closer to Lapis' side.

 

"Who do we run to for help, Bismuth?! This place has changed too much; we can't possibly know who to even go to!" Lapis had a hard enough time learning to trust others on Earth; she was terrified at the prospect of having to interact with any of these modern Homeworld gems.

 

Bismuth admittedly didn't trust any of the gems in sight, either, but there wasn't time to deliberate over who to trust. An actual  _crime_  was happening before their eyes, so the blacksmith decided to trust her first instinct. "When in doubt, trust that gem kind will look after their own! Y'know, besides  _that_  maniac. You take the Peridot on the right; I got the left!"

 

Lapis nodded to her partner. "You'd better be right about this!"

 

Both dashed over to the Era 1 Peridots and explained the situation. For once, the pair found Homeworld gems that actually had a sense of gem decency. Well, that, and it was just plain wasteful to intentionally cripple a perfectly functional Peridot, let alone one as prolific as 5XG. A gem that irrational couldn't be permitted to roam about and damage their rate of production.

 

Said maniacal gem had, by that time, exhausted all of the pleasure she could get out of the left arm for the time being and moved on to the left leg, grinding the metal against it. By this point in time, Peridot had gone through so much agony that she barely had the strength to kick 9FC. She was mostly on the floor now anyway, with only her right leg still bound to the rack. After so much silent crying, Peridot's bleary eyes were about out of tears to spill, and even if she did lose her resolve to not scream, she'd barely be able to after this much damage. One scream would've had her pass out, and 9FC wasn't about to let that happen. Not until all four limbs were crippled, anyway.

 

"What would they say if they saw you right now, 5XG?! Those idiots at the station were  _so_  impressed with how you could pretend to be a Diamond! You turned your nose up at us, you called  _me_  Green Pearl that one time, remember?! Oh, they had a  _good_  laugh at my expense after you left! Remember how you'd do that cute little "That will be all" and how those idiots 7SJ and 1YA thought you were someone to look up to?! But you never respected any of them! No, you  _always_  thought you were better than us!"

 

Peridot could barely register 9FC's words; she'd been going on about this for a while now once she snapped and realized she couldn't get her prey to scream.

 

The sad part was… while there was some exaggeration thrown in there, 9FC wasn't wrong. Words and context transformed more of her old "feelings" into real memories - and no, Peridot couldn't really make a case for herself. She  _was_  snooty, and that only worsened as her skills improved. But given the nature of how Homeworld worked, she was always rewarded for it.

 

Only mimicking the Diamonds was something she could have gotten in trouble over, but by the time she developed enough of an ego to do it, she had also become clever enough to know exactly when she could and couldn't get away with it. Every time a Peridot like 9FC tried to snitch on her, she would ask the snitch to prove it, and they never could. That would result in the snitch getting in trouble instead, or in some cases shattered.

 

Peridot realized she'd been responsible for a lot more lives being lost than she originally believed, even if these cases were an indirect involvement. The technician still remembered smirking with satisfaction seeing one of her own getting shattered for trying to get her in trouble. She'd tell the Peridots who witnessed it that would be their fate if they ever tried to rat her out to upper management.

 

The more she thought about it, the more she realized she was little more than a "Queen Bee" stereotype with a desperate, almost constant need for praise who got really lucky. Ironically, 9FC was a far more sensible gem in her early years. She  _felt_  things; sentiments Peridot wouldn't feel until she became stranded on Earth. She seemed to genuinely care about her fellow Peridots, while 5XG saw them as nothing more than pawns to exploit for her own gain. In some ways, it did feel like the wrong Peridot was assigned for the Earth mission.

 

It was depressing, as she knew at this point 9FC was too far gone off the other end to be rehabilitated.

 

"WHY DIDN'T YOU EVER LISTEN TO ME?!" That was followed up with a solid punch to the face, which would leave a scar on her cheek.

 

Peridot wished she had the strength, in more ways than one, to truly respond to her fellow gem.

 

"PERIDOT FACET-2F5L CUT-9FC, CEASE AND DESIST! IN THE NAME OF YELLOW DIAMOND AND BY HER LAW, YOU ARE SENTENCED TO SHATTERING!"

 

She never would.

 

The look of being caught by surprise, so caught up in her obsession to break 5XG in every way possible that she knew these were her last moments alive… that was a look that would haunt her victim far worse than the savage torture she just endured. There couldn't be a worse face to feature in her nightmares.

 

Except for the look of her lifeless eyes as her gem was shattered by laser fire of the authorities.

 

And topping that, her lifeless body collapsing against Peridot before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

 

And reigning at the peak of the nightmare mountain was seeing and really  _feeling_  the shattered remains of a faulty Peridot fall all over her.

 

She didn't want to see anymore.

* * *

 

 

Bismuth and Lapis rushed over to their fallen comrade but stopped short realizing what she just had to witness to have her life saved.

 

"Stars almighty…"

 

"Wh… what can we do now? After this, we can't make her… a-and the others…"

 

One of the Era 1 Peridots, a security technician named Facet-1F8L Cut-2AB, stepped over to survey the damage. "You two did well. 9FC will never hurt another gem again. Her victim may suffer some long-term trauma due to this, but that's nothing a little work can't fix."

 

Bismuth wanted to slap the taste out of this Peridot's mouth. Just when she thought she had been right to trust her. "You  _can't_  be serious. Look at her! Even if work  _was_  enough, and I assure you it ain't, how can you put her to work?! You don't need to be a medical expert to see she's too busted up to do anything! She needs rest!"

 

The other Peridot, medical technician Facet-1E4G Cut-3BB approached the battered Peridot, who had fallen into catatonic shock. Lapis tried her best not to glare at this one, but she had a feeling the damage was going to be severely downplayed.

 

"If it were up to us, that's what she would be doing first," 3BB stated. "Unfortunately, our records show that Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG has been absent from work for the better part of this cycle and all of last's. Something about an interplanetary mission to Earth that went on longer than scheduled."

 

"Sh-she just got back from that today!" Lapis exclaimed. "I mean, we saw her come out from a terminal earlier today! Right, Bismuth?"

 

Bismuth nodded. "That's right. She finally comes back after a mission that probably took a lot out of her, and  _this_  is what she comes home to. And you're gonna send her to work like that?! What are you expecting her to  _do?!_ "

 

"Like I said, it isn't up to me," 3BB reiterated. "And we get cases like this way more often than you think. But Yellow Diamond wants results, not excuses. 5XG just has to complete one work shift, then she'll be taken straight to the infirmary. Her tour of duty is about to start; it's standard protocol to report for work the moment you touch down on Homeworld unless you're transitioning between assignments, and our records don't show any future off-world inspections on her schedule. If she's more than 2 clicks late, she'll get written up by her manager."

 

"And who is her manager? We can talk on 5XG's behalf," Lapis assured the much larger-in-stature Peridot.

 

"What is your relation to her?" 2AB asked, clearly regarding them with suspicion.

 

"Oh, we've worked close by. We see each other on a daily basis, we're practically neighbors!" Bismuth quickly said. She was surprisingly good at making up a cover story. "If that psycho you just shattered showed you anything, it's that 5XG is pretty short on friends, which I think she could really use about right now."

 

The two Era 1 Peridots looked to each other, then shrugged. A loud crash was heard in the distance elsewhere, making 2AB sigh with aggravation. "I gotta take this. 3BB, mind doing me a solid and wrapping his up for me?"

 

"Sure thing. Pretty sure I can administer painkillers without you, 2AB."

 

The enforcer left to deal with the source of the crash, and while Lapis and Bismuth had their reservations, they knew fully well Peridot would be in desperate need of painkillers for a while. They let the medic do her job.

 

"I know this is horrible, but I can't stop thinking… even after all that, she didn't even poof," Bismuth wondered out loud. "I've seen some mighty gems get poofed by less, is all I'm sayin'."

 

"She told me before that Peridots are a lot tougher than they look," Lapis said tiredly. "Guess she wasn't making that one up after all…"

 

"Oh, not at all; Peridots by nature are  _very_  difficult to damage to such an extent, especially if they're guarded by a visor like hers is," 3BB spoke up. "You'll notice that for all the parts of her body that were damaged, 5XG never sustained a blow to her forehead where her gem is, and short of impalement, dismemberment, or destabilization, you'll be hard-pressed to poof any Peridot. Even an Era 2."

 

"That's impressive, though I feel like that did nothing here but make her suffer more than she needed to," Lapis muttered. "Guess it makes sense, though. If Homeworld's technicians were poofed easily, not much would get done, huh?"

 

"A design oversight like that might have toppled our empire before it got off the ground," 3BB noted. "Praise Yellow Diamond's careful attention to detail! -Oh, that reminds me. You asked for the name of 5XG's manager before, correct?"

 

"We sure did," Bismuth affirmed. "So, who is it?"

 

"Yellow Pearl. And for your own safety, I don't recommend talking to her even on 5XG's behalf," 3BB. "That might end badly for all three of you."

 

"... Duly noted," Lapis said with a nod, looking to Bismuth and noticing she was every bit as freaked out to hear this bit of news. "Can you at least trust us to make sure she gets to work on time, then? We don't want to lose her after seeing this."

 

3BB nodded and stood up. "I was about to ask that favor of you, so by all means. The painkillers should be taking effect shortly, so you'll be able to talk to her before she's scheduled to report in. Just bear in mind she'll be… acting a bit cracked, but that's completely normal. I've given her enough to be free of pain for the duration of her shift, so it would be pertinent of you to direct or take her to the infirmary once it ends."

 

"We'll be sure to do that," Bismuth agreed. "She, uh, lost her limb enhancers during her Earth mission; that's kinda why she was in that store in the first place. Are they all on her right…?"

 

"All but the right foot, but I went ahead and attached that. Everything else is attached, just… not at all comfortably. I suggest readjusting them when she comes in to rest. Thank you two for seeing her to work; you really are valuable companions. If you'll excuse me, I have other patients to tend to."

 

Both Lapis and Bismuth let out a huge collective sigh as they sank to the floor nearby Peridot.

 

"Thought those idiots would never leave," Bismuth murmured.

 

"I swear, every time I start to think we're doing well for ourselves as a team, something like  _this_  has to happen," Lapis lamented. "I can't help but feel like Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst would be looking down on us right now."

 

Just then, she noticed the small picture of Steven on the floor nearby. She leaned over to grab it, and sure enough, it was the same one Peridot had been carrying. "I wonder what Steven would think of this… of us."

 

"We should be thanking our lucky stars that Steven did not have to see that massacre in-person," Bismuth adamantly said. "He'd bring this whole place down with us, I'm afraid. But I think you're being too hard on yourself, Lapis. We just started out this way a couple of days ago. Garnet, Pearl, Amethyst… they've had thousands of years to work out the kinks in their teamwork. So, it's a pretty unfair comparison at best. And this here… this was bad luck striking us hard."

 

"I can't believe she would go and get more of those stupid robot parts put on her after I just told her the other day ago that she doesn't need them," Lapis grumbled. "I thought she was past this."

 

Bismuth looked to their fallen leader, who had been at least looking more at peace since she was given the painkillers. "She said something about it being part of another plan, that she'd get laughed outta the building without 'em," she recounted. "Too much happened in too short a time… can't believe I remembered that much, even."

 

" _Ffjshhhhsh…_ stupid idiot  _clodsh_ …"

 

"Peridot!" Lapis and Bismuth turned around to see Peridot's eyes crack open. She still looked terrible, but she wasn't in agonizing pain, and showed no signs of being traumatized despite clearly having been.

 

"Ohh honey, don't you mind us, you need your rest," Bismuth urged. "You leave this to your Big Sis Bismuth, okay? I'll get us out of this."

 

" _Pppffft,_  okay,  _Pops._  Geez, I'm not even dead yet. Don't you be robbin' me blind of that title…"

 

"You really have no idea how close you got," Lapis said darkly. "We know you're not in your right state of mind, so just don't bother. Let Bismuth take over from here and-"

 

"Ifff I'm like, sooooo outta my mind, uh. Why is it... that like… I can remember  _exactly_  what I was gonna do next fer my plan, and you two can't? You two dun' look like ya got the crap beat outta yerselves…  _mmmhahahah._  At least  _I_ got that excuse, but if I still 'member this and you don't… I think you should, like, believe in me just a little bit?  _Steven_ would…"

 

Now Lapis didn't know what to feel. Glad Peridot seemed okay and thankfully painless for the time being? Yes. Worried that Peridot still insisted on carrying out her plan AND maintain leadership even though she clearly wasn't fit to so do now? Yes. Miffed that Peridot had the gall to insult her  _and_  Bismuth after what they went through?  **Yes.**

 

She held out the Steven photo and dangled it over Peridot's head.

 

"Hi there, Peri!" Lapis used her best imitation of Steven's voice to simulate his presence combined with the picture, in hopes that her high-as-a-kite friend couldn't tell. "Steven here! I'm back! Lapis and Bismuth rescued me while you were asleep! So let's head back to your awesome ship with the awesomer name and head home singing about peace and love and the planet Earth!"

 

Bismuth had to cover her mouth with  _both_  hands to stop herself from immediately busting up into hysterics. This was her first time hearing Lapis do an impression. Peridot, of course, was not so considerate, and was soon cracking up loud enough that Lapis actively had to cover her mouth so as to not rouse attention.

 

Peridot's laughs died down soon enough. As soon as Lapis uncovered her mouth, she saw her old roommate look positively enraptured. "Ah… ahaha…  _ow_. Okay, it still kinda hurts to laugh. Still,  _hilarious_. Y'gotta get into a profession like that when we come back to Earth. And gimme that! That'sh  _MY_  gravity stab'lizer!"

 

"Your what?" Bismuth was left out of the loop on that still, only because Lapis was sure Peridot didn't want that issue to spread out. However, Bismuth had gotten a glimpse of the other picture Peridot offered to Lion as a peace offering. She was slowly piecing it together on her own, but wasn't fully there yet.

 

With great reluctance, Lapis held out the picture. "If you can take it out of my hands, you can keep it. We need to find a better place to regroup and talk strategy, so if you can stand up in those disgraceful  _things_ , prove it to me now."

 

It just dawned on Lapis that among 9FC's shattered remains, her limb enhancers did not share the same fate and instead collapsed into pieces around Peridot. All the more reason to get out of here, Lapis believed. This particular spot gave her the chills.

 

Thankfully, the painkillers enabled Peridot to move with relative ease, although she was very prone to swaying about and stumbling over herself. That part could be attributed to other factors: Peridot not being used to wearing the limb enhancements after nearly 8 months, and the fact that Peridot was an extremely clumsy individual. She snagged the Steven picture and held it close to her… though it didn't feel quite right. Artificial fingers didn't allow Peridot to feel the warmth that she always felt when she looked to this picture for solace in the past.

 

"Th-thanks for that… I needed that reminder," Peridot said tiredly. "And I know you're both gonna try and stop me, but… I gotta go to work now."

 

_"What?!"_  Lapis was horrified; Bismuth was fearful and confused. "Peridot, we're on a mission! Don't fall for what those Era 1s pulled; you're not even in a good condition to work!"

 

"Correction… I am absolutely  _sublime_ ," Peridot insisted, as best she could in her loopy tone. "I didn't deal with friggin' 9FC of all gems just to fail my next mission cuz my teammates are a bunch of worrywarts. There's somethin' I really need in that work station, alright? Plus, I got a plan so great… I-I can't not do it now, not after this."

 

She looked to Lapis and Bismuth; pure sincerity shined from her eyes. "Don't take that away from me, please."

 

Now her fellow Crystal Gems felt bad. They looked to each other for answers, but neither had a solid one to give.

 

"You're gonna have to pull off some Diamond-level legendary skill to warrant a full work day, Peri," Bismuth reminded her. "We've got  _some_  time to spare, but that's too much."

 

Peridot sputtered into a fit of giggles. " _Oh_ _, wow!_ You seriously think I'm workin' a full shift?  _Ppffft_ , wow. No- no seriously, you're gonna wanna see how I play this. We're gonna get ourselves an all-access path straight to Steven… and I can do something  _really cool_. Can I have my tablet back, Bismuth?"

 

After a moment's hesitation, Bismuth conceded and strapped it to Peridot's right arm - higher up than usual for obvious reasons. "I'll give you a chance, then. What happened here… that was just happenstance. We're holdin' you responsible for doing your job right here, Peri. Only reason I'm lettin' you do this against my better judgment is 'cause you've got some good stuff in you right now. Just don't get too crazy, all right?"

 

"You're getting rid of those hideous things once we're done with your old job, right?" an indignant Lapis inquired. "I'm sorry, but seeing you like that just-"

 

"Makes you feel so  _short_ , huh?" Peridot finished for her with a laugh. She even gave Lapis a condescending pat on the head to rub it in. It had been a long time since Peridot had been anywhere near this height; she was on par with Bismuth. She wanted to enjoy that while it lasted; it was the only real joy Peridot could derive from these limb enhancers.

 

Lapis glowered at the blatant disrespect, but Peridot waved it off. "C'mon, now. I thiiiiink I said before you guys can't actually come in 'cause yer not employees here, but I'm gonna give a signal for ya both to come in, 'kay? And I'm keepin' it a surprise, 'cause you'll  _know_  it when you see it. Just stay close… and maybe check on me a little better than ya did back there, eh?"

 

That brought a lightning strike of guilt down on both Lapis and Bismuth. Both had internally despaired over how they could have stopped this if they had just kept looking instead of assuming Peridot had everything handled. And it was such a simple task at that... they learned the hard way how deceptive those kinds of missions were. They needed to be consistently vigilant and watch out for each other so something like this wouldn't happen again.

 

Lapis and Bismuth found a good angle to consistently look through one window of Peridot's work station. The latter waltzed into work, having adapted fairly quickly to her new limbs and and being heavily drugged.

 

Peridot just walked to where her old terminal once was, paying no mind the row of Peridots she had to pass by that were already hard at work. Her console was vacant, and had been ever since Yellow Diamond handpicked her for higher-level assignments. Just as she casually re-assumed her post, briefly fiddling with her tablet before settling down to her console, a familiar nasal voice barked out from behind her.

 

"Well, if it isn't 5XG." It was Yellow Pearl, who stood at the back row, which was the highest level. "And I see your record is surprisingly clean. Yellow Diamond finally knocked some sense into you. You have a lot of catching up to do, little one. Your console hasn't gotten its operating system updated in quite some time."

 

"Mm, I see that," Peridot remarked. "Looks like I'll need to reboot it for the updates to take."

 

As she turned the power off her console, while tapping on her tablet reflexively, she turned to face Yellow Pearl. "In case you're wondering, this accessory contains my backed up data that I acquired on Earth. I had permanently lost my limb enhancers and all the data stored in them. I had to get new ones on the way here, you see."

 

Yellow Pearl still rightfully regarded this Peridot with suspicion, but her explanations were sound. Except… "And what made you think you could come into work looking like that, 5XG? Do you think that little of your career?"

 

Well, she did. In so many ways Peridot had been seeing firsthand why she made the right call to stay on Earth. Homeworld felt more and more like a prison as time went on.

 

"I was severely assaulted while acquiring my new limb enhancers," Peridot exclaimed in a neutral tone. "Facet-2F5L Cut-9FC was the culprit; if you check your records, Yellow Pearl, you should find her termination listed up near the top of the current events. I had no time to tidy up between that and making it to work on time. Also, with her termination, are we not in need of a replacement for 9FC's console?"

 

Yellow Pearl let out a quiet grunt. She wanted an excuse to bust Peridot so badly, but her story checked out and she wasn't wrong about their terminal now in need of a new functioning Peridot. It was infuriating to see 5XG no longer on Homeworld's wanted list.

 

"You have a point, 5XG. I presume you'll lead the class as usual while I take care of this and you wait for your console to reboot?"

 

Something resembling a smile formed on Peridot's face. "It would be my pleasure, ma'am," she said with elegance, but with a hint of wicked glee. "I do owe you all that much for my extended absence."

 

Yellow Pearl did not leave the room, but rather busied herself with calling in for another Peridot from a Kindergarten. As long as she was still on her console, that was all that Peridot cared about.

 

Another moment later while Peridot diligently typed on her tablet, she addressed her fellow gems.

 

"All right. I would like to have everyone's attention," Peridot spoke up to her coworkers, who gradually pulled their heads up from their monitors to acknowledge her.

 

"Yes, hello there." Peridot offered a bit of a wave. "I've been tasked to assign you all an alteration to your console's command codes. The Era 1s in I.T. want us to be the beta testers, and the idea of this came from none other than Yellow Diamond herself. I have already tested this code out for myself, and it has enabled me to double the output of my work instantaneously. Consequently, I have been granted honors from my Diamond, and I wish to share that with you."

 

This sweet talk easily won the other Peridots over; Yellow Pearl was too busy drafting a new Peridot to really acknowledge her words. Little did she know, the 5XG edition she loathed so much had been hacking into her own console the whole time since her arrival into the workstation using her trusty tablet. Her own console was under the guise of rebooting, but Peridot had in fact shut off the power entirely for it. It only affected her unit, so no one cared enough to take notice to such an insignificant detail. Very discreetly, Peridot unplugged her console before commencing her coup de grâce.

 

"Input this console command as I speak it:  **/ Override / System / Root / Core, Return, 0 / 0, Page Up.** "

 

As Peridot spoke these words loud and clear, she remotely input the same commands on the distracted Pearl's console simultaneously. Once every single Peridot in the room hit Page Up, what appeared on their console screens horrified them.

 

"You will become the pioneers of Homeworld." Peridot was smug as a snake. With the painkillers completely dulling her pain and even encouraging the gem to build up adrenaline, the cunning Peridot had quickly rebuilt her ego and drive to complete her mission, no matter the cost.

 

"The first gems to ever  **divide by zero**. Congratulations."

 

As Peridot moved to an isolated corner, every console in the room save for her own went ballistic. All screens shifted to static, words became jagged glitches, and being so close to these consoles that were about to blow, every single Peridot seated were given a very dangerous jolt of electricity, binding them in place so they couldn't escape. And yes, the very same happened to Yellow Pearl, which Peridot especially loved to see. She didn't bother trying to figure out why tormenting so many of her own kind and her manager brought her so much… joy and satisfaction. Lights in the room flickered wildly as a chain reaction made almost the entire room a death trap.

 

Lapis and Bismuth peeked in through the blinds, but jumped back when they saw powerful electric currents fill the room, creating quite the light show. They had to duck once the intensity caused every window to shatter into pieces, but thankfully this vicious display finally started to die down. But the destruction left in its wake… had yielded effective results, albeit in a disturbing way.

 

In the workstation, all but one console crumbled into scrap. Every single Peridot with the exception of 5XG had been poofed back into their natural gemstone state; most laid neatly on their demolished consoles. Yellow Pearl shared their fate, as her gemstone rolled to the floor. It was dark, though occasional sparks from snapped cables that lined the ceiling offered some soft flashes of light.

 

Lapis and Bismuth agreed it was finally time to head in. If that wasn't a signal, they didn't know what was. Shattered glass and crystals scattered across the floor, prompting the barefoot Lapis to use her water wings to hover above… though she knew this was an extremely risky thing to do given what just happened in this room.

 

She seriously considered investing in some footwear in the near future.

 

The site was a scene straight out of a sci-fi horror movie. The pair watched their fellow Crystal Gem climb up the steps; those limb enhancers and her demeanor made the leader quite unsettling. She acquired Yellow Pearl's gemstone and bubbled it. Peridot promptly turned around to see her friends on the floor, just gaping at her.

 

"Your turn to hold on to a thing of mine, Lapis. Catch."

 

Lapis was very put off by Peridot's tone, but she collected the green bubble as it was tossed to her without hesitation. She correctly assumed this was what Peridot had been after all this time.

 

"So… pretty cool trick, huh?"

 

Words spoken like a true sociopath… except that wasn't who Peridot was. But never before had she looked so sinister; so wicked and sadistic since she defected from Homeworld. Bismuth struggled to find the words to express how she felt about this. Peridot calmly slinked down the stairs, and just as she approached her undamaged console, some different lights on the ceiling flickered on, as well as some on the floor.

 

"Wh-what was that?! Did you just get caught?!" Lapis cried out.

 

Peridot scoffed at Lapis before plugging the power cord back into her console. "Did you two seriously not have backup generators in your time? My stars, ancient life must have  _sucked_ …"

 

"Peridot," Bismuth finally found the words she wanted to say. "Did you get what you came in here for? That Pearl in the bubble over there?"

 

"Primary objective complete," Peridot confirmed. "If you can afford just a few more minutes, I'll be able to unlock every gate in this quadrant. And Yellow Pearl over there… her gem is like one of Earth's… I believe they're called skeleton keys? It will grant us clearance everywhere. Just keep a hold on that bubble, and Homeworld will bend to our will."

 

Neither of her teammates knew this until now. In hindsight, this stunt made a lot more sense, but they both had major problems with had Peridot executed her plan. And her current attitude was the most unsettling one yet.

 

"Well, go on and finish up; we're gonna have a little talk once we find another rest stop," Bismuth informed her.

 

"Yeah... a  _major_  talk," Lapis agreed. "We're glad you managed to make our journey easier, but the way you did it…"

 

"Are we really going into semantics right now?" Peridot sounded tired of the prospect of It already. "Believe me… you have no idea how  _tempting_ it is to just… turn around and," She quickly did so, charging a ball of electricity with her artificial limbs before aiming at the helpless Peridot gemstones.  _"Finish the job!"_

 

**"NO!"**

 

_"Peridot, DON'T!"_

 

The cries of her friends made Peridot visibly twitch. She held her fire. She looked to her friends; eyes momentarily looking genuinely lost and confused, silently crying for help, before her pupils shrank and her features hardened once more.

 

"Oh, please. Like I was actually going to shatter them. They're not worth my attention, let alone my effort." Instead, she pointed her charged and ready weapon to her console. " _This_ , on the other hand… needs some closure."

 

Now Lapis was terrified and confused. "Peridot, you've probably caused enough racket to draw half of Homeworld's enforcers over here. We need to get moving… and  _you_ need to move on!"

 

"What's this tantrum gonna accomplish, anyway?" Bismuth challenged her leader. "Did you not go on a  _major_  tangent on Day One, telling me and Lapis not to even  _think_  about getting revenge? What exactly do you think this is, Peridot?!"

 

The blast was shot in the direction of Lapis and Bismuth.

 

Only… not. It was purposefully undershot, so all Peridot did was fry the floor between them.

 

" **GET OUT**  if you have a problem, then!" Peridot snarled. "I need this. I  _know_  I need this! Let it be known,  _that was a warning shot!_ "

 

"Bismuth… I don't think we can reason with her like this," Lapis muttered nervously after a lengthy and tense moment of silence following that threat. "I-I hate this just as much as you, but… given what's happened already…"

 

Bismuth reluctantly nodded. "Best to let the kid tire herself out," she whispered. "We can help her out then. For now… maybe we'd better give her some space."

 

Lapis nodded in agreement. "In hindsight, I'm kinda glad she forced us to work things out before we got here. That might be the only reason why this team hasn't fallen apart yet."

 

They quietly gave Peridot some space, who now devoted all of her attention to her console; the last one standing.

 

Peridot couldn't process coherent sentences in her mind at this point. Instead of charging her weapon again, she used her extended arms to crush the console piece-by-piece, as if she wanted to grant it a slow and painful death. She did It over, and over, an over again, choking out a sob each time. All of this was pure anger and hatred; she never held so much of it in herself before in her life. Peridot could barely comprehend what was going on with her, but her logic shined through and told her one thing: if she didn't let this out now, it was very likely going to be a sentient being who would receive this wrath later. That would be unforgivable. Irredeemable. Steven would hate her.

 

She took out his picture and wailed. "Steven, I'm so close!  **SO CLOSE!**  But I feel like I'm gonna blow up!  _Don't let me blow up, Steven!_ "

 

She hated this station and everyone in it. Friends didn't exist in this world; only competition. It disgusted her thinking about all the days she wasted behind the console she was driving into dust.

 

It disgusted her more that she needed the limb enhancers to even accomplish this. Her own natural strength wasn't enough… it was barely anything at all. But the longer she stayed plugged into these implants, the more Peridot just wanted to cry and go home.

 

She literally crushed and pounded her console into dust. When Bismuth and Lapis finally came back once they heard the noise die down, all they found was a shivering Peridot laying in a fetal position, silently crying while feebly trying to jerk the limb enhancers off herself. But it was clear both mentally and physically that Peridot was incapable of liberating her limbs.

 

Bismuth and Lapis didn't hesitate to rush over and help their ailing leader; Lapis especially couldn't wait to remove those accessories. However, both were sickened by what they saw once Peridot was finally freed and back to her tiny natural self.

 

Deep tears, dark bruises, and even a point on her left forearm that looked cracked. Both of her arms looked mangled beyond repair. Peridot's outfit concealed what damage was done to her left leg, but after seeing both arms, it was safe to assume that was no better off.

 

"Stars almighty… I can't believe I'm seein' this." Bismuth was in disbelief. Peridot had accomplished her plan with ease despite her severe limb injuries and overall trauma. She didn't show a trace of the latter; just the face of a would-be killer. "She really can't go on like this anymore. But we don't have medical supplies on the PeriLuck… I knew we were forgetting something important."

 

Lapis, meanwhile, quietly brought out some water from her pouch and manipulated it to absorb the limb enhancers within a decently sized water bubble hovering in the air.

 

"Lettin' out some anger of your own, Lapis?" asked a very saddened Bismuth.

 

Lapis gave her a quick nod before swirling the water around the submerged extensions, going faster and faster until Lapis forcefully willed it to become a bubble of ice. Not just any kind of ice - she manipulated its temperature down to absolute zero. With a passive growl, she hurled the ice bubble against a wall further away and nodded with satisfaction when she watched the frozen limbs shatter into nothingness just like the ice.

 

"They won't be hurting Dot anymore," Lapis hatefully assured her companion. The hatred faded back into sullen hopelessness as she looked at Peridot cradled into Bismuth's arms.

 

Bismuth stood up and nodded to her teammate. "Let's get out of here. I don't know where, just… somewhere that ain't here."

 

"We have a lot more options now, at least," Lapis said as she pulled out the bubbled Yellow Pearl. "Of course, we still don't know this place any better than we did when we first got here. Our only navigator is out of commission…"

 

"You know what I feel? Screw it. Let's take a page out of the boss' book and just… … _take a chance._ _"_

 

* * *

 

**[** **THEY SAID WE'RE LUCKY TO HAVE GOT THIS FAR  
**  
**AND THAT IT'S NOT WORTH FIGHTING FOR  
**  
 **THE WORDS ARE WRITTEN ON THE WALL… ]**


	5. This Rebel Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a streak of bad luck, the back-up Crystal Gems finally reunite with Steven and Connie, and not a moment too soon. Peridot is in dire need of medical attention, and Steven's the right man for the job. Unfortunately, this is by far the biggest healing job Steven has ever undertaken...

Yellow Pearl's gemstone turned out to be incredibly useful. Not only could it open any door, but it could lock them as well. So even if the Crystal Gems picked the wrong corridor to wander about in, they had some insurance. The problem was, it was still a matter of wandering about blindly and hoping for the best.

 

Good fortune finally struck when the remaining Crystal Gems discovered a series of transport tubes; much bigger and sturdier than the one they set up as an escape route outside. It looked like they reached the heart of Homeworld's metropolis; now Lapis and Bismuth could get to where they needed to go if they knew which tube to pick.

 

Unfortunately, Peridot had been unconscious the entire time, still curled up in Bismuth's arms. Much of the aimless wandering gave Lapis and Bismuth a chance to really get to know each other, which was valued by both. But with each passing second, they worried if they were too late for Steven after all. There had been no sign of Lion anywhere to give them hints.

 

"Let's take a quick break, shall we?" Bismuth suggested, sitting down on a bench to rest her feet, as well as her arms.

 

"Might as well," Lapis agreed. "We made it this far, and choosing the wrong tube could send us all the way back to where we started for all we know."

 

She looked down to Peridot, who started wincing in her sleep. "And it looks like the painkillers are wearing off… this isn't good."

 

"Yeah, this is manageable when she's sedated," Bismuth stated. "After all this walkin' I don't think I can carry her  _and_ hear her suffer."

 

Lapis stood up and paced around, no longer hiding how frustrated she was. "Of all the times to  _not_ have Steven, it had to be now… we  _have_ to be making some progress, here! We're so close, but we don't know where we'll be fast-tracked to… maybe Steven isn't even where he was earlier now! We just-"

 

Something made Lapis freeze in place. She had been pacing next to one of the largest transport tubes, and maybe it was a trick of the light, but she could have sworn she saw Lion right behind her reflected on the tube. She whirled around, but Lion was nowhere to be seen.

 

Bismuth caught on to the sudden turn. "Is somebody after us…?"

 

"N-no, I don't think to," Lapis murmured. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "We really could use Lion right now. Might just be a mirage for all I-"

 

At the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a pink flash like a feline jumping through portals. She turned her head, but again, nothing. This time it was seen on the faint reflection of the windows that decorated this part of Homeworld.

 

"Bismuth… it's gotta be Lion."

 

"Lion?! You sure about that?"

 

Lapis kept a sharp eye on the area. "I'm sensing a theme… I'm seeing him show up on reflective surfaces."

 

Bismuth frowned, then nodded. "I suggest you find some better areas with that. Try checking on some of the darker spots, or maybe a corridor lined with the windows."

 

"Me? Alone?" Lapis didn't expect that.

 

"You ain't going far," Bismuth assured her. "As Vice Boss, you've got my blessing. If you do find Lion, get Steven  _immediately._ You know where to warp back to."

 

Lapis smiled and looked up. "Yeah, at least they labeled this place very well…"

 

It was called Core 1A, and all of the tubes featured in this quadrant had names of their own, spiraling out in all kinds of directions. She waved to Bismuth before dashing off to the corridor.

 

It was extremely bright, but Lapis was wise to pick it, as she saw a very clear silhouette of Lion on the wall opposite of the windows. Lapis cautiously made her way further down the corridor, looking in all directions, before she heard the sound of time and space being bent to an animal's will right behind her. Lapis whirled around and, to her delight, found Lion sitting right where she just walked past.

 

"Oh, thank goodness! You're here!" Lapis rushed over and gave Lion a modest hug. Lion nuzzled her face in return, eliciting a giggle from the aquatic gem before she pulled away. "Lion, will you please take me to Steven? This is about more than just finding him now… one our own is severely hurt. He's the only one who can help-"

 

She didn't need to say any more. Lion ushered the gem to mount him, and a second later, Lapis found herself warped into a completely new and very decadent, ornate room. This  _had_  to be a Diamond room.

_"Lapis Lazuli!"_

 

Lapis didn't have any more time to take in her surroundings; her eyes lit up seeing the source of two excited voices whom shouted her name with glee.

 

"Steven! Connie!"

* * *

 

 

Meanwhile, Peridot had finally woken up, though she had regretted doing so. For Bismuth's sake, the sake of not drawing unwanted attention, and the sake of what little dignity she still had, Peridot tried to not raise her voice above a soft whine.

 

"I was hoping so bad that was just a nightmare…"

 

Bismuth was about to pat the little gem on the back, but she thought better of it considering how sensitive her body was. She opted instead to just comb her fingers through her hair.

 

"We all wished that," Bismuth sympathized. "And regardless of how you pulled it off, Peridot… you did it, and all by yourself. Almost immediately right after what… happened before."

She really didn't want to go into the details. "Your willpower is unreal, kid. I can't remember when I last saw a gem with your kind of determination."

 

"Their determination wasn't Steven."

 

That made the larger gem blink with surprise before she settled with a knowing smile. "That's some devotion, Peri. It's no secret he's your soft spot, but you turned that vulnerability into a power source. I respect that."

 

Peridot couldn't avoid blushing, so she opted to keep her eyes down on the floor, which her tiny legs couldn't even reach. "It's… more complicated than I'd care to admit. And I already told Lapis… I said I don't know how to identify it, and right now I don't care because until he's rescued, and  _all_  of us are back on Earth, it's not gonna matter either way. To be honest I… I don't  _want_ to put a label on it at all."

 

"Afraid everything will change and never be the same once that happens, right?" Bismuth knowingly asked, and Peridot nodded. "That's normal, and nothing to be ashamed of. It's never a bad idea to just take your time with these kinds of things. You're young - I assume - you've got so much time to develop and figure yourself out."

 

" _Guh_ … you all have a betting pool going on for my age until I just say it, don't you?" Peridot grumbled.

 

"We made it that obvious, huh?" Bismuth chuckled. "I put in my bet right after I met you. We kinda like the mystery, but we love gathering the clues just as much."

 

Peridot smirked. She couldn't overstate to herself how thankful she was to really have friends who could make her smile, even when she was in agonizing pain. "Not that you're ever gonna get it out of me, but I say add another layer of challenge. Use The Cost is Correct rules so-"

 

She was abruptly cut off by the sound of a portal opening up and Lion running over, only to stop right by Bismuth and Peridot.

 

"Special delivery!" Lapis announced, sounding the happiest she had been in ages. As well she should be: their goal, Steven Universe, was right behind her on Lion. And a bonus, Connie Maheswaran was also along for the ride right behind Steven.

 

"LAPIS! You did it!" Bismuth was stunned with disbelief. "Oh, bless us all… Steven, you're okay! And Connie, too!"

 

" _We_ did it," Lapis corrected, patting Lion on the head. "The Crystal Gems all had a hand in this."

 

"You guys have no idea how glad I am to see you!" Steven cheered. "Bismuth, I'm so relieved you and Dad got my message! How'd you make it all the way here from Earth, anyhow?"

 

Connie smiled tiredly. "After everything that happened, it's  _such_ a relief to see some friends. I admit I'm interested to find out how our experiences stack up. It sounds like we've all had a lot of-"

 

She just then noticed the state their so-far silent friend was in. "Oh my gosh, Peridot! What happened to you?"

 

"Oh, Peridot… sorry I forgot to say hi," Steven apologized with a wave, but stopped short when he saw just how bad off she really was. "Usually you're the first one who greets me, but I understand why-"

 

**_"STEVEN!"_ **

 

In what appeared to be the cut off everyone mid-sentence hour, Peridot went from frozen stiff with glassy eyes, barely able to sit on the bench upright, to flat-out jumping off the bench like a cat to pounce Steven with such force that he was easily knocked off from Lion, hugging him with as much strength as she could muster given her condition. Which was surprisingly a lot at first, but it died down quick as Peridot sobbed against his chest.

 

"Y-you, you stupid, idiotic, foolish, dumb, moronic, dense, naïve, delusional, biggest  _mega-clod of all-time!_ " That was the most she could get out before crying on him again. She punctuated every insult with the weakest punch she had ever thrown on his shoulder, but Steven just smiled and seemed to understand.

 

"I've been getting that a lot lately," Steven laughed in reply. "But it's okay, see? I'm okay, you're- uh…"

 

Lapis noticed with the Lion warping right out in the open in a concourse added with Peridot's cries drawing attention to this bizarre group that stuck out like a sore thumb in the crowd that they should consider relocating.

 

"Everyone, we're starting to get  _looks_. Last thing we need is for you kids to be locked up again," Lapis spoke up. "We should find a more secluded place."

 

"I hear that," Bismuth agreed and stood up. "Steven, she's banged up  _bad_. And if you're gonna be healin', I think you two should take Lion and do that somewhere a little more private. As long as Lion's with you, there should be no problem with you returning back to us as soon as you're ready."

 

"Yeah, that sounds like a safe bet," Steven nodded and agreed. "I can do without any more Pink Diamond sightings for one lifetime. C'mon, Peri. I don't think I've had to use my healing on you yet. I think you'll like it!"

 

Peridot quieted down her crying after she overheard Lapis bringing up the unwanted attention, but she was still in too much shock to do anything other than sniffle and try to form words, but fail. She let Steven hoist her on top of Lion before coming up behind her. With both holding on tight, Lion portal-leaped out of sight.

 

"Are you sure I shouldn't have gone with them?" Connie asked. "I wouldn't want to attract unwanted attention, either. It's sort of my fault that Steven ended up in trouble to begin with…"

 

Bismuth shook her head. "Better not. Peridot's in a very fragile condition right now, and I don't wanna think how much it'll take out of Steven to heal her. 'Cause it's more than what you saw on her arms, Connie. This is something that'll take Peri a long time to get past… and we need her ready now. We still have friends that need finding."

 

"As long as Lion follows us the way he has been for a while - in the shadows, that is - it should be fine with just the three of us walking around," Lapis told Connie. "We've been traveling as a trio until we found you and Steven, and early on Peridot told us how much harder it's gonna be for us to get off this planet when all of the gang is back together. That's just something we'll have to prepare for when we find Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst."

 

"Besides that, Connie, understand that the three of us came into this totally blind," Bismuth pointed out. "All we knew before setting foot here was that Steven was in Homeworld and in trouble. That's literally it."

 

"I see…" Connie understood the implication now. She looked up to Bismuth and Lapis, giving both a serious, understanding nod. "Amazing that you guys found us based on so little information, but I take it that means I'm the only one who can fill you in on the details while Steven's on healing duty."

 

"We'd greatly appreciate that, Connie," Lapis said as she bowed to the girl. "I think we can give you some valuable information in return. But let's find a better place to talk, first."

* * *

 

 

"Huh, the Homeworld Kindergarten…" Steven eyed Lion, who no-sold the stare as usual.

 

"Well, it is a big abandoned underground place with lots of hiding spots," he remembered. "Sounds like a private spot to me! Are you okay with it, Peridot? I know this is kinda… literally where you came from, but…"

 

Peridot grumbled as she took in a sharp breath. "Steven, I don't  _care_ , just put me down somewhere! Preferably a spot where I'm not gonna get skewered by gravel!"

 

She could finally drop that strong front she had put on since waking up. Or, really, since that incident in the limb enhancer shop. She seriously never wanted to see another set of those again after today's events. Now that the painkillers had fully worn off, Peridot felt nothing but searing pain in every limb besides her right leg. Her face ached from that punch 9FC gave her; she didn't even realize it had been scarred yet.

 

Steven was quick to comply, hopping off of Lion before carefully picking up Peridot; he visibly winced every time he saw the state of her arms. "You won't have to worry about that, okay? You can use me as a cushion."

 

"Ah- are you sure you're okay with that…?" Peridot asked, trying to suppress her blushing. But in her current state, she couldn't suppress anything. The pain was just too overpowering. "I, I don't want to make it awkward for you…"

 

"I'm okay with it if you're okay with it," Steven said with a shrug. "Here, just sit down on my lap. I promise I don't bite."

 

He plopped himself down on the ground, reaching his arms up to ease the battered gem into his lap, making sure she was as comfortable as she possibly could be, given the circumstances. "Let's take care of that little injury real quick."

 

Before Peridot had the chance to ask what he meant by that, she felt a slimy thumb smear across her lower right cheek.

 

" _Gyak!_ S-Steven, what's the-" Peridot couldn't finish her sentence before she felt the throbbing pain in her face dissipate into nothing. Her scar healed completely - not that she'd notice - but there was such a calming, soothing after-effect that she no longer cared about the residual saliva on her cheek. "Oh… oh my stars, that's…"

 

"Remember that time you kidnapped me to fix that warp pad and I just kinda licked my hand and slathered it on there?" Steven sounded way too jovial talking about the time Peridot straight up threatened to kill him if he refused to send her home after abducting him fresh from his bed.

 

Even though he still failed her (not for lack of trying, at least), Peridot didn't just off him then and there. It was still awkward for Peridot to think about too deeply, but she nodded to Steven's question.

 

"Yes. I recall it didn't do anything at all, Steven," she flatly replied.

 

"Aw, shoot. That's right, hah. I sorta lost by ability to heal for a little while… I mean, I have it back now!"

 

"I know, Steven," Peridot calmly told him. "I just felt it heal my face. Doesn't make it any less weird."

 

Steven let out an awkward laugh. "It'll be hard for me to give you anything less than weird, because I don't think I've ever healed anyone who's had this many injuries before! That's gonna be a lot of saliva… that I…"

 

Peridot grumbled. "Oh, I'll take a stab at this one. Just like everything else about you humans, your saliva is  _finite_."

 

"I guess you could say that. I mean, if my mouth runs dry, it could regenerate in maybe a few hours, or the next day," Steven said casually, as if he tried to ease the gem's concerns by not making it sound like a big deal. "I mean, I'll try, but…"

 

"Oh, you  _will_ ," Peridot told him with a deceptively wide smile on her face. "You're going to. Because right now, both of my arms and my left leg feel like they're  _on fire_  while being impaled multiple times by all kinds of sharp and dangerous tools! And then doused with your archaic Earth fossil fuels! And did I mention each limb  _really_ wants to explode? I feel like I'm on the verge of dying,  _ha ha ha_ , but  **no big deal, RIGHT?** "

 

 

 

There was just a few seconds of silence before Steven stuck a finger in his mouth, trying to collect as much saliva as he could, and started to apply it to Peridot's right arm. "I-I'm so sorry, Peridot. You ended up like this because I called for help…"

 

Peridot wanted to smack this boy. For being so fond of him, Steven did have a penchant for driving her up a wall. But she physically couldn't, and given everything that had happened recently, she didn't really have the heart to inflict that much pain on him this time. "You stop that right now, Steven Universe. None of that. You don't get to play the "it's all my fault" game with me."

 

Steven pouted. "There's no way you brought this on yourself, Peridot. You're great and lovable."

 

It was hard to tell if Steven was just referencing that title Peridot liked to have, or if he sincerely meant it. Or maybe it was both.

 

"Yeah, well… that's back when I thought I knew all there was to know about myself," Peridot muttered. "Remember when we were drilling down to stop the Cluster, I think it was… when we passed through a layer of peridotite, you asked me what kind of memories I had from this Kindergarten here, or my early days in general?"

 

Steven smiled. It helped him a lot to get a good conversation going to make him take just a small amount of worry away from what he should do once he runs out of saliva. "That's one of my favorite days to remember!" That drew a blush out of Peridot, of course. "You said you didn't have memories, just feelings. Nothing really specific."

 

"Well, guess what. While I was on my merry way to save your life earlier today, I learned how I can turn my feelings  _into_ memories." Peridot didn't sound proud of this achievement as Steven expected her to be. "I never did it voluntarily; it just…  _happened_  once I returned to certain places or… met certain figures from my past that had… way more of an impact than I originally thought."

 

"That's so cool, Peridot!" Steven's eyes glowed with anticipation. She could tell he was dying to hear one. "I can't imagine how that must've felt!"

 

"I can tell you right now how it feels," Peridot shot back grimly. "I hated it every single time. None of the memories I gained were good ones. All they did was show me just how  _pure evil_  I was. That's why I ended up like this, you know."

 

"B-but you're  _not_ pure evil at all, Peridot! And why would anyone do this to you?!"

 

"That's why I used past-tense, Steven," she pointed out. "I  _know_ I'm not horrible right now. But back in the day,  _well_ before I was even assigned to Earth… stars, I was the  _worst_. The worst thing is, the Peridot who ended up doing this to me… she did it because I treated her so horribly back when we were colleagues. She used to be more like how I am now. When I crossed paths with her today, I fell into her trap and she started to torture me, trying to get me to break. She could have shattered me easily, but that wasn't good enough for her. She wanted me to scream. Scream so loudly, I'd draw the attention of authority figures who would misconstrue my cries to be ones of general weakness and lack of durability; unacceptable traits for a Peridot to have, and a crime punishable by shattering."

 

Peridot saw the look in Steven's face and immediately felt awful. She would end up making him cry; she knew it… but he did ask for this, and since Steven was the one healing these wounds, he had a right to know how he got them. "So, I willed myself to stay quiet."

 

"What's her name?" Steven asked. Of course he would ask something like that.

 

"Her full name was Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-9FC," Peridot stated while doing her best to sound neutral about that individual. "Lapis and Bismuth found out what was happening to me. But they couldn't risk blowing our cover, so they tried to seek out some Homeworld authority. To their credit, they stepped in and did their job. They saw a Peridot deliberately try to cripple another, probably one thing we can agree should be against the law. But…"

 

"They shattered her," Steven understood. "I know I have a weird take on how stuff like that should be handled. I probably shouldn't say anything else."

 

"There's nothing else to say about it, anyway," Peridot informed him. "But you wanted to know why you're having to use all your saliva up on me… there's your answer. I should've thought it through before telling you I found out more memories about myself, because none of them are pleasant conversational topics."

 

"Sometimes you have to talk about the stuff that's hard to talk about. Even when you really don't want to… you never know how it might change your life." Steven hoped that would console Peridot at least a little, but he wasn't sure whether or not it was working. "Phew. One arm's almost done…"

 

Peridot forgot to check on that. She looked to her right arm and was delighted to see most of it was back to its proper color and no longer swollen or throbbing in pain. Steven worked to cover any spots he missed before holding her completely healed hand in his.

 

"Wow, thanks… th-this is so gross, but kind of fascinating," Peridot shyly told him. "No wonder you're my center of gravity…"

 

Steven looked up at Peridot. "Huh?"

 

"Oh, nothing," Peridot hoped to the stars above she could gaslight him. She really needed to start watching what she said out loud. "Hey, you need to take a break? I can tell you how we all assembled to come up there and save you guys."

 

"Mm… sure, why not? I like your stars, by the way."

 

" _Oh_ … thanks," Peridot bashfully said while accepting the compliment. "I probably could've made a little more of an effort to… oh, um, right." She remembered she promised Steven a story. Lingering on details that made the gem even more flustered than she was already was something she wanted to avoid like the plague.

 

"So, Bismuth and your dad got your SOS. Lapis reformed, then I did later. Before I reformed, it sounds like Bismuth and Lapis were bickering about what to do and how to save you. Bismuth didn't have a clue; Lapis didn't either, and even worse didn't wanna participate. She stuck around until I reformed, and I didn't know this at the time, but both of them had the nerve to "test" my resolve. My first question to all of them was why they weren't mobilizing or even  _trying_ to brainstorm anything. Apparently, they were lazy clods who wanted me to do all the work, what a surprise…" Steven chuckled at that, which made Peridot smile a bit.

 

"They tried to lead me into believing they were gonna storm Homeworld and take everybody down even though… y'know, we were the only gems left." Peridot continued. "So, I went off on them big time for treating this like an ambush when it was supposed to be about rescuing you. Once I guilt-tripped them so hard to the point of  _bawling_ by making them think how their reckless actions could lead to their demise, and even worse than their own shattering, think about how that would affect  _you_ … I decisively won that battle and was unanimously voted as the new leader of the Crystal Gems. Since, y'know… we assumed Garnet and the others were incapacitated."

 

"Yeah," Steven sighed. "All three got poofed all because me and Connie accidentally fused at a party and they stood up for me. So, until we rescue them, I guess you still are the leader of the Crystal Gems! It's cool that you finally got to be one, Peridot!"

 

Peridot rolled her eyes, trying not to smile like an idiot to match the perpetual blush on her face. "Haha, right. Be honest, do you see me as  _any_ kind of leader?"

 

"Well, yeah, in some ways," Steven said, and he sounded honest. "I know Lapis doesn't like to get involved and she's got her reasons. Bismuth's been in her bubble until that day… and one other, kinda, but she's more about being good at fighting and getting friends hyped than making those really tough choices that leaders have to make. Neither of them know Homeworld well, but I bet you've been their navigator the whole way, haven't you?"

 

"Well yeah, by process of elimination. I'm the best choice overall for that particular role, since I'm the only gem who's lived there within this calendar year," Peridot said this as if it should have been painfully obvious to him already. "Doesn't mean I'd be a good leader. I came really close to losing it at times."

 

"Don't most?" Steven countered. "It's a huge responsibility. Only reason I didn't get the impression that you're the leader now is because you're…"

 

"I somehow became the damsel in distress; a  _Paulette_ ," Peridot said with disgust. "But oh yeah, I was feeling the responsibility, for sure. I think I actually took on too many bleeping jobs for this operation."

 

She looked to Steven and coincidentally, appeared to be distressed. "Outside of Crystal Gem Leader and Navigator, I was the overseer of operations for the ship we built to make it here. Bismuth never built a ship before, so I had to give her the specs of a ship I designed myself a long time ago. We used the parts from Blue and Yellow Diamond's ships to create it in the span of about… 2.5 Earth days, I think. I salvaged parts for the ship's interior and ended up making the ship on the interior while Bismuth did the exterior."

 

Steven smiled. "Wow, that's amazing. Bismuth showed me her forge and how she made weapons and stuff. You got a blacksmith to build a space ship! I wish I could've seen it." He then smirked. "And you convinced her to give it a try even though she never did it before. Sounds like a good motivator and leader to me, Peri."

 

"The ship did hold up perfectly on the trip here," Peridot admitted as she humbly smiled. "And it only took a few hours to travel. Not bad for a rush job at all, I'll say that much. I even had Lapis participate; we can't handle the heat like Bismuth can, so it was necessary for Lapis to use her power to cool down all the parts so it wouldn't be just Bismuth doing  _all_ of the work for something she had never done before."

 

"You got your whole team to work together on that?" Steven looked amazed. "Peridot, you're  _amazing!_ "

 

Of course, Steven would shower her with praise. And normally Peridot basked in it; this time, all she could think about was trying to look nonchalant as she once again felt her cheeks flushed. Her entire face felt heated.

 

"Hah, tell me something I  _don't_ know." Peridot figured being haughty would stand out to Steven over her face. She knew soon enough he'd get concerned and ask her if she was okay if she couldn't suppress this.

 

What she kept forgetting was that she still had two limbs in throbbing, agonizing pain, and it already took a great deal of Peridot's willpower to not scream and cry out. She so very easily could be doing that instead of holding a conversation with her "center of gravity".

 

"You took up all those jobs while you were still on Earth," Steven recounted. "You're one heck of a multitasker…"

 

"Yeah, cool, but I knew that already too, Steven," Peridot replied with a smirk. "I had to plan two steps ahead for everything. Take Lapis, for example. We both know what she can do with water… but here on Homeworld, natural water reserves dried out thousands of years ago. What little water you ever see around here is inside the machinery throughout the facilities, so that would make Lapis completely helpless. My solution? Borrow some water from the ocean by your house."

 

"I never would have thought of that!" Steven looked starstruck with Peridot's feats… which didn't help her problem one bit.

 

"Calm down; there's more to this," Peridot urged. "We obviously couldn't take your Earth's entire ocean with us, so I told Lapis she needed to train herself. She's so used to fighting with all the water she'd ever need to fight with, but we could only bring a relatively small amount. So, I made her train to learn how to use her water offensively in a different way. I didn't get to see much of it, but I made it clear to Lapis that with a finite amount of water at her disposal, she needed to learn techniques that were effective and used much smaller amounts of water. More importantly, she needed to make a habit to make the water she has reusable, because she can't afford to waste it. I guess a simpler way to phrase it is… have Lapis learn how to make her water operate like those boomerang things you told me about."

 

"Whoa, you were even a trainer," Steven was still in awe. "You had to do all that on Earth… how do you  _do_ that, Peridot?"

 

"Uh, simple," Peridot said shyly. "I had a great motivator. A fantastic motivator…" She had pretty much given up on resisting her blushing now. Steven smiled, though the hints of uncertainty on his face told her he didn't catch on to her implication. "Someone I needed to save, no matter what."

 

"... you mean Amethyst?"

 

If she could, Peridot would have slammed her head against something repeatedly at this point. She squeezed his hand, which never left hers.

 

"Someone I owe the entire life I have now to," she said in a firm, but hushed tone. "Everything who I am, everything  _that_ I am. Someone who believed in me when no one else did, who taught me nearly everything I know for life on Earth. Someone who made me a better… not sure person is the right word…  _nnnggh_ , someone who went out of their way to show everyone, including myself, that my past is not today."

 

She paused, taking in a shaky breath as she struggled to maintain her composure. "And I'm still learning, still trying to be a better gem for it. I'll stagnate; I'll  _implode_  without that person in my life." She frowned at Steven, but had tears welling up in her eyes. "Is that telling enough for you, Steven?!"

 

Steven looked stunned as he took in Peridot's words that came straight from the heart. A silent moment passed, rendering Peridot very tense. Her moist hand nearly slid away from Steven's grasp, but at the last second, he grabbed it firmly, followed with a gentle squeeze.

 

"Uh… please don't freak out, but I figured out who you meant once you said it was someone who taught you about how to live on Earth," he admitted.

 

In an effort to calm her, he gave the highly emotional gem a soft, reassuring smile. He wanted to take her other hand, but Steven winced when he saw the state of it and remembered he was supposed to be healing all of that  _and_ a leg.

 

Peridot fell against his chest and sniffled. She squeezed Steven's hand in return while she wracked her brain, trying to find the words to say now. Had she said enough already? Too much? With Steven, it always felt like not enough.

 

"A lot of people put their faith in me… and don't get me wrong; I appreciate it. But usually I feel it's a little more than I deserve." Steven looked towards the ground for a moment. "Especially after what's gone down since I came here."

 

He looked back to Peridot and stroked her hair with his free hand. "But, I dunno… do you think it's weird that I don't feel that way when you said that just now? From anyone else, it would've been  _way_ overboard. But because you're the one who said it, it's… it doesn't just feel like the usual praise, you know? I can tell you're speaking from the heart, Peridot."

 

"I'm sorry, Steven. I made this so awkward…" She wanted to sit up, but Peridot felt so pacified with the boy gently stroking her hair. "This is the worst time for me to be doing this to you, but you have no idea how much I owe you for keeping myself together this far along in the mission. I've been so stressed out, overwhelmed, whatever. I tried so hard to be a true leader, Steven. But I'm sure later on, when we all get through this and come back home, Lapis and Bismuth will back me up when I tell you… I've been so all over the place. Unstable. And the only way I can will myself into being…  _myself_ again is when I think of you."

 

Steven was definitely going to ask Lapis and Bismuth independently about Peridot; they'd know better than anyone else right now. He was touched beyond words hearing Peridot pour her heart out, but he wanted to know just exactly what she had to suffer through to get to him. After making her recount the incident with 9FC, he knew there was more to it that she wasn't telling him. But that was understandable. Still, he wanted to understand. If he couldn't get that from Peridot, his best bet was to get the perspective of her teammates.

 

"Peridot, really. It's okay," Steven assured her. "This is actually the best time to just… let it all out, you know? We're not going anywhere until you're completely healed; we need our leader healthy if we're gonna rescue Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst and make sure everyone gets home safe and sound. And I think we're gonna be here a while, 'cause I'm feeling the strain already with the saliva and I haven't even started on your other arm yet…"

 

Peridot winced upon being reminded that she had a near-destroyed left arm. It somehow got the worst of 9FC's brutality, but finally being reunited with Steven, especially like this, made her able to endure it much better.

 

"You're actually calling me your leader unironically," she realized out loud. "Steven, I-I can tolerate this pain so long as you don't move from this spot," she said in a near desperate tone. "I don't want to overwork you. It's just…  _nrnngh_ , there has to be some way to work around that limitation! If only I could-"

 

She stopped herself from talking immediately. "Never mind. Just hold me or something!"

 

Well, Steven wouldn't say no to adjusting the technician on his lap in a way that let them have more of a proper embrace, but the hybrid found it far too odd that Peridot would  _not_  share one of her genius ideas. Her pathetic attempt to distract Steven with a hug also suggested she had an idea, but for whatever reason chose to withhold it. And from Peridot of all people, Steven didn't want to have secrets between them.

 

"C'mon, Dot. Out with it," Steven coaxed with his warm, friendly tone. "I like hearing your ideas."

 

"Oh, but it's really something you would consider  _disgusting_ , Steven!" Peridot cursed herself for failing to lead Steven off the trail. Whatever good fortune she had earlier in the mission that made her a master of deceit had long since worn off. "Even I find it… unsettling."

 

Steven chuckled. "One thing you haven't learned yet about Earth boys, Peridot, is that we're usually fascinated with gross stuff. So c'mon, try me!"

 

Peridot groaned as she conceded defeat and finally rose up to meet Steven face-to-face. They were a lot closer together than she thought. She had no desire to complain, except for maybe the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. "R-remember you asked for this," she muttered in annoyance before regarding him with sincerity.

 

"You said you only have so much saliva before your mouth runs dry. So, I had a hypothesis. What if I…" Her cheeks felt tense and stung a little, as well they should, because their deep teal coloration was a very dark contrast to her natural skin color. "If I… donated my own saliva, and mixed it in with yours… d-do you think that'd…  _grrghkk_ … uh, extend the supply…?"

 

"Hm, I never thought about that… I mean, it makes sense to me," Steven surmised. "Guess I didn't have a reason to think about it before because I never had to heal anyone this injured until now, but it should be an easy thing to prove or debunk. All we'd have to do is-"

 

_Finally,_ it dawned on Steven why Peridot didn't want to suggest this. Or, as Steven could tell, from Peridot's eyes that no longer met his… her sudden full-body shivering… the sweat poured down her blush-infested face, so much that it began to fog up her visor… how she reflexively bit her lower lip in an attempt to hide what she wanted to express… and finally, from the way her free hand grasped the split ends of her hair.

 

"Oh… that's why you didn't…" Steven struggled to not let that sentence die off; he knew it would just make Peridot think worse of herself for even bringing it up. "Peridot, c'mon. I'm not upset. If it means I'll be able to heal your arm and leg all in one go, I'd be happy to do it."

 

_"Do you have any idea what you're agreeing to, you clod?!"_

 

"... Yeah? I know I don't have experience with kissing and stuff," Steven admitted. "But I know what it is and what it's… uh, about. And after all the Camp Pining Hearts you've watched, I know you know at least that much too, Peridot."

 

Peridot didn't expect Steven to be so accommodating. Why wasn't he resisting? Why was he so…  _okay_ with it? Why hasn't he brought someone else up given the context, namely Connie? She was going to have to make sure there was no misunderstanding of any kind going on here. After all, she wanted her first kiss to  _mean something_ , definitely with a nicer setting than a desolate Kindergarten on her hellhole planet of origin.

 

Then Peridot stopped her train of thought right there. She didn't remember putting that much thought into how she wanted that kind of first kiss with Steven; it just suddenly sprung up in her mind as if it had always been inside her, just hiding. She had so many strong feelings for Steven as a friend, a family member, and apparently a soulmate as well…

 

Peridot knew this. She knew; that was why she didn't want to define her relationship with Steven. Not only could the change have a permanent adverse effect on their relationship, but Peridot feared she'd lose all the other facets of her and Steven's relationship if she had to pick only one to dominate. They all came together so well, all as a result of the amount of time Peridot had been in Steven's company. It was what Peridot loved most about living on Earth.

 

To a lesser degree, she had multiple facets of her relationship with others in her life, but her life as a typical Homeworld Peridot? There was only ever one facet to Peridot's relationship with any of the gems she interacted with. And usually it came down to two flavors: competition, and respectable authority figure. The very notion that relationships beyond the two she grew up with seemed so ludicrous when she first came to Earth, but letting herself be open to those possibilities made Peridot feel born anew. It grew slowly at first, with the concept of "nemesis" being introduced to her when she first met Steven and the Crystal Gems. Ever since then, her curiosity and enthusiasm broke free from her repressed former self.

 

That was when Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG was reborn into Peridot.

 

Even though this actually was a bad time for either of them to go into this tricky subject matter, it was necessary if Peridot wanted any chance of healing her wounds before the Diamonds hunted them down.

 

"Steven, I…" Peridot winced, then shook off her hesitation. She hadn't finished her sworn mission yet. She couldn't keep delaying this because of her insecurities and uncertainties. "I just want to know. Are you okay with this only because you know we need to at least try so we won't be stuck down here for the rest of the day, or… d-do you really think-"

 

"Do I think I might have feelings like that for you, and this is a good chance as any to figure that out for sure?" Steven cut her off. He was a little antsy himself, but at least what he said was close enough to what she was trying to spit out. "I wish I could give you a solid yeah or no. With everything going on right now, I haven't had time to really make up my mind on that. But yeah, the thought… has kinda crossed my mind before, that we'd make  _some_ kind of couple. We spent so much time together anyway, y'know? But it seems right, that you'd be my first kiss. I taught you a lot since you came to Earth; now we're, uh… learning together, teaching each other."

 

Peridot nodded, but still looked so ashamed of herself for letting herself spill her heart out in this place of all places, at this time of all times… "Right, we can't make big decisions like that here and now; not with everything else going on. I figured there would be vastly superior competition, and maybe there is, but… there's no reason we can't do this for both reasons, is there?"

 

Steven shrugged and smiled. "I already decided I'd do it for both reasons, so… all we gotta do is, well. Do it."

 

Peridot closed her eyes; brows furrowed as she did her best to eliminate every trace of hesitation from her body. All apprehension, all fear. This was  _Steven_ , after all. If anyone would still accept her if she happened to fail at kissing, it would be him. Her eyes opened and locked with Steven's. "On 3, then?"

 

Steven nodded. "Good idea. 1…"

 

"2…" Peridot was as ready as she'd ever be.

 

"3!"

They both leaned forward, and their lips met for the first time. Like most first kisses, it was nothing glamorous, though for the pair, they immediately felt like they had ascended to a higher plane of existence. Peridot would have described it like riding a shooting star; Steven's version was more like riding a giant fluffy cloud.

 

They shared a round of innocent experimentation, getting acquainted with each other's lips and movements. Just a little under a minute in, the couple closed their eyes and let their instincts take it from there. Peridot and Steven at least knew ahead of time they would have to engage in some… much more advanced kissing techniques in order to be able to rule a verdict on Peridot's hypothesis. Even if it was proved wrong, Peridot had the consolation prize of finally being able to take that first step with Steven, and share a unique first experience.

 

Thankfully, Peridot's instincts, when left to their own devices, were just as tenacious as the sentient gem they belonged to. She was the one who needed to infiltrate Steven's mouth, so she took the initiative to poke her tongue against his lips for permission to invade his mouth. Steven let himself be the passive one here, letting Peridot explore his mouth and offered no resistance when she raised her healed arm to rest her hand against the side of Steven's head, and consequently jerked her partner's head forward, crashing their lips together and intensifying their kiss.

 

It was easy to get lost in the raw, newly-discovered passion, although Steven's limitations of his human half meant there was a definite time limit on how long they could make out before he needed to back out to breathe. He did indulge shamelessly until his body urgently demanded oxygen, which made him pull away from Peridot rather suddenly.

 

The shock of the separation and Steven pushing back sent a hazy-minded Peridot falling on her back. The impact made her squeal in pain, and just like that, Steven immediately regretted doing that because of his stupid human needs.

 

"A-aw, aw geez, are you okay, Peridot?!" He leaned over to rest his hands over each shoulder an pulled her into sitting upright again. "I'm so sorry- I was just running out of air and I was getting light-headed…"

 

Peridot, with closed eyes, simply held up her right hand as if to tell him "say no more".

 

"You're not hurt, right? Well, I mean, no more than you are already…"

 

That elicited a snicker out of Peridot as she opened her eyes and smiled at Steven. "Well, let's see if there's any merit to my hypothesis. We might be on a fast track to getting rid of my pain after all… hopefully." She gulped. "Because I'm kind of fresh out of ideas besides this one."

 

"Go on and try!" Steven exclaimed, looking giddy. "Even if it doesn't work, I definitely don't regret giving it a shot!"

 

Peridot blushed as she poked her right index finger into her mouth, then quickly pulled it out, running the saliva-coated digit run down her left arm in a line, watching with anticipation.

 

Smiles quickly disappeared as there was no change within the amount of time Steven's pure saliva took to take effect.

 

"Should've figured that solution was too easy to be real," Peridot grumbled. It  _seemed_  too logical to  _not_ work, though…

 

"Ah, well, it wasn't a total bust," Steven said, taking it in stride. "We got to share a new experience with each other today!"

 

Peridot smiled and laughed quietly at how easily Steven rebounded from that disappointment. "Yes, I suppose one experiment did go off with a rousing success. We'll just thank our lucky-  _oh my stars!_ "

 

"What's happening?!"

 

A bright pink light emitted from the saliva trail on Peridot's arm, nearly blinding the pair before dying down. When Peridot opened her eyes, she immediately pulled up her left arm, which was surprisingly less painful and easier to do now. Steven opened his eyes and leaned over to get a closer look on what kind of phenomenon just occurred.

 

Not only was the thin line of her skin coated with saliva completely healed, a couple of inches' worth of the skin surrounding that specific line had also returned back to its natural lime green tone, albeit with a tint of pink aura and sparkles that eventually faded off.

 

" _Whoa_ … I've never seen it do that before," Steven whispered out; his tone indicated he was holding in a great deal of excitement and the urge to cheer out in celebration.

 

Peridot was speechless for a moment. Her eyes were glued to the results. "Ah… let it be known that my saliva has  _never_ done that before. I think that just left us more questions instead of an answer…"

 

"Who cares?! It worked, way better than we could've imagined!" Steven exclaimed. He enthusiastically raised up a hand to Peridot, requesting a high five. "Score one for the power of  _love!_ "

 

Of course, Peridot wouldn't leave him hanging. Just as soon as she finished that so-called "ritualistic human obligation", she narrowed her eyes at Steven and huffed at him. It must have been something he said.

 

"Do  _not_ make me dump you before we even start dating."

 

* * *

 

 

**[ FORGET THE LIES, THE MONEY**

**WE'RE IN THIS TOGETHER**

**AND THROUGH IT ALL**

**THEY SAID**

**THAT NOTHING'S FOREVER… ]**


	6. Always Keep Moving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are finally rescued; now the hard part of the mission commences as the Crystal Gems attempt to flee Homeworld... only to run into White Diamond.

It could not be overstated how much of a boon Yellow Pearl's gemstone was for the Crystal Gems.

Although Connie didn't know all the twists and turns of Homeworld like Peridot, she did have a better idea of where to head than Bismuth and Lapis by far. She wasn't that familiar with these common areas compared to the palaces, but by recognizing those iconic architectures in the distance, she at least knew which  _direction_  to go. And the closer the trio got, the more visible Pink Diamond's ship and that White Diamond bust became, and they came off as very imposing for the gems of the team. But as long as they had the Homeworld equivalent of a skeleton key, Homeworld was indeed their oyster.

 

"I still can't believe Blue Diamond let you two go like that. I sort of buy Steven appealing to her better nature because… that's sort of how Peridot and I became members of the team. At the same time, I have a hard time believing Blue Diamond even  _has_  a good nature to appeal to."

 

"It does sound surreal," Bismuth agreed with Lapis. "A nice Diamond sounds like the textbook example of a contradiction."

 

"I know; if I wasn't there to see it for myself, I'd be just as skeptical," Connie acknowledged. "I mean, if Steven wasn't able to prove he was Pink Diamond, she and Yellow would have completely annihilated every single one of us."

 

She frowned as she thought back on how hard they all lucked out back then. "For that reason alone, I'm still skeptical. At least for Yellow Diamond; Blue feels very passive and emotional, but mild, too. She at least listened to Steven in the tower. Plus, she fed us and gave Steven his old clothes back."

 

Lapis huffed, blowing a lock of hair out of her face. "Well, they're good deeds. I won't dispute that. What I will say is, this sounds like a textbook example of  _Nepotism_."

 

"Ooh, good touch there, Lap!" Bismuth and Lapis traded high fives; Lapis doing so casually that she didn't even have to look at Bismuth to do it. "That's what Homeworld boils down to, huh. Textbook examples of everything that corrupts the world we live in."

 

Connie offered a weak smile back. "That  _was_  a good one, Lapis. Anyway, I'm really thankful you got us a key that opens anything around here." She was now the one in charge of holding the green bubble containing Yellow Pearl's gemstone. "I never would have guessed the Pearls owned by the Diamonds could function like this, but I guess it does make some sense. They're around the Diamonds almost all the time; you'd almost never get an opportunity to poof them."

 

"Hey now, the honor all goes to Peridot for that one," Bismuth corrected. "All Lapis and I did was watch how she pulled it off."

 

"I caught Yellow Pearl when Peridot threw the bubble my way," Lapis dryly said. "But yeah, that's 100% her accomplishment. And she pulled that off with three busted limbs, limb enhancers that were put on too tight, and under the influence of a  _major_  dose of sedatives. She really earned that leader cred."

 

Connie smiled, both out of joy and disbelief. "Whoa, wait. Lapis, are you serious?"

 

Lapis looked to Connie and smirked. "She may have sucked as Garnet of the Crystal Temps, but when she's herself, and the stakes are high, you wouldn't believe the crap that brat is capable of."

 

"I can't wait to hear all about it when we get home!" Connie exclaimed. "Oh, I can't wait for her to rejoin us. It's a real Crystal Temps reunion!"

 

"Sure, Connie, we'll tell you all about our exploits here in Homeworld. In exchange, you three better give me the story of the "Crystal Temps"," Bismuth requested. "We'll have a nice bonfire at the beach and trade stories around."

 

"Huh, it'll be a real Crystal Temps reunion when we get back to the ship," Lapis realized. "Forgot Pumpkin's guarding the ship with Steven's dad."

 

That elicited more worry than surprise out of Connie. "They're both here on Homeworld?! Why?!"

 

"Like I said… they're guarding our ticket out of here," Lapis reiterated.

 

"Connie, don't you worry about a thing," Bismuth assured the girl, consoling her. "They're in the safest possible spot and Peri made sure Greg's well-armed on the off-chance some unwanted company does try to get in the ship. I bet you thought we'd be escaping the same way you came in, didn't ya?"

 

"Y-yeah, that thing sticks out in my memory so much, I forgot you two came in from a completely different ship," Connie admitted. "I guess it's a lot less conspicuous, at least."

 

Connie unlocked another passageway with Yellow Pearl, which led the three outdoors for the first time since arriving on Homeworld. It was a lengthy veranda that had a few paths that branched off in various directions.

 

"Perfect!" Connie exclaimed as she felt the wind pass through her hair. "This must be the roof level. We can go straight to the Diamond Palaces from here!" They were definitely within view, and much closer by than ever before. One of the branched paths from the veranda seemed to stem out towards that general area, so the trio for once got to pick a route and not have to hope for the best.

 

Bismuth let out a sigh of relief and hung her head. "Thank the  _stars_. We've been trapped in that labyrinth all day. Nice to get a breath of fresh air at last."

 

"Finally; all this walking is killing my feet!" Lapis was quick to let out her water wings and ascend into the open air. She kept Peridot's words in mind and refrained from doing any wild air stunts, but it felt heavenly to have the fresh air  _and_  the open space to spread her wings.

 

Connie couldn't help but be happy for them. "I'm glad you're finally getting some relief. I wasn't too wild about walking those crowded halls either, and I only joined you guys, what, an hour ago?"

 

"Don't forget completely we were clueless as to what was going on with you guys," Lapis said from the air. "We hated having to assume the worst."

 

"I'm so glad Steven was able to reach you," Connie said sincerely. "I don't think we could've made it this far on our own. We're so close to rescuing everybody."

 

Bismuth happened to notice just how far up they really were. "Phew. Better not make a habit of lookin' down unless you're Lapis. We climbed up a lot more stories than I thought."

 

"I'll stick close by," Lapis assured her teammates. "I'm just gonna do a little, hm… what was that word Dot used again? Recon?"

 

"Oh, you mean reconnaissance! That actually is a really good idea." Connie felt more and more optimistic the closer they approached the palaces. The path was fairly straightforward, and no apparent obstacles loomed ahead, but that was no reason not to make that a 100% certainty if possible. "Let us know what you see ahead."

* * *

 

 

"Yeah, so Yellow Diamond just left her palace looking  _pissed_ , and Blue Diamond looked like she was inviting her over to where Connie said she and Steven were kept before I came to the rescue with Lion."

 

"Now  _that_  is some top-notch recon," Connie said, giving her a thumbs-up. "Thanks for the report, Lapis!"

 

"So there's a Diamond-sized opening for us now! We can run in, free our friends, and get out before she even knows what's goin' on!" Bismuth was very pleased to hear this.

 

"Actually, there's a couple of Topazes at the front, and a door that might be locked…"

 

To that, Bismuth grinned wickedly and brandished her hammer arm. " **Even better.**  I was anticipatin' to knocks some heads the second I got here! This is what I call "best for Bismuth"!"

 

Connie also had quite the menacing grin as she held up the green bubble. "Think Yellow Diamond might be looking for this?"

 

Lapis reflected the eager grins of her teammates. "You'd think she put up a Missing Gem sign all over the planet if she  _really_  was. We're making better use out of that, anyway."

 

Bismuth decided to put her field commander skills to use. "Alrighty, friends. I'm takin' the Topaz on the left. Lap, you get Righty."

 

Lapis lowered down close to ground level and held her hand out to Connie. "Hey, keep that key safe. I've only gotten to use my power on a bunch of robot junk so far, so I might get a little over-excited. I've been dying to try out these new techniques Peridot made me learn."

 

Connie blinked. "Wow, I didn't think Peridot was much of a fighter…"

 

"Oh, she's not," Lapis assured. "She just inspired me to make more with less. You'll see in a second."

 

A second later and two poofs, a pair of Topazes fell to the floor after Bismuth went the direct approach and walloped it while Lapis took her opponent out with streams of water had the appearance of a spring-loaded hookshot and acted similarly, with the "hook" part actually made out of ice. Following her former roommate's expedient advice, she kept her hold on most of the water used for this attack, so it could reverse-flow back into the pouch where it came from. Then she saw an opportunity to try another new thing and couldn't help herself.

 

"Ooh, I wanna try this," Lapis insisted, kneeling down to the poofed Topazes. She picked them up and smirked as she successfully contained both gemstones in individual blue bubbles.

 

"Good thinking," Bismuth commended. "It'd be a bad move to let those guys come back on their own."

 

"Sure would suck. So, for my next trick…" Lapis tapped the top of both bubbles, which then promptly vanished. Both Bismuth and Connie couldn't help but look at their teammate inquisitively. "What? Everyone knows you don't leave clues at the scene of a crime."

 

"So… where did you send them?" Connie asked.

 

"Who cares? But this is a good time to bring up the fact that it's probably a bad idea to do the same to our key," Lapis advised. "Go ahead and do the honors."

 

"Right!" Connie rushed to the front door and presented Yellow Pearl, and like all other obstacles, they ceased to be as the doors opened wide to reveal an empty throne room.

 

The trio examined their surroundings, trying to find anything that resembled bubbled gems. Connie and Bismuth came up with nothing on the floor level. Then again, given the giant size of the throne, there was a good chance it would take a while to find the four gems of their captured friends.

 

"Found them!"

 

Or the airborne Lapis cheated the system yet again, as the throne was literally the first thing she inspected from an aerial view, and sure enough a large bubble containing all four gems inside was spotted.

 

Bismuth just shook her head in disbelief and looked to Connie. "Can you believe she didn't want to come on this mission at all?"

 

"Our lives would definitely be way harder without her," Connie said with a laugh. "This is great, though! That's all our mission objectives complete! We can finally go home, to Earth!"

 

"I guess we should try waiting for Steven and Peridot to catch up," Lapis dully figured as she landed on the floor, holding the large bubble. "Maybe somewhere other than the tyrant's lair, though."

 

"Good idea," Connie muttered. "Uh, so, since all that's left for us to do is head for your ship, do you think maybe I should leave the key here? We don't to use her anymore, right?" She gestured to the green bubble in her hand.

 

"Don't you dare! You've got  _no_ _idea_  what I had to go through to secure that clod!"

 

The trio looked towards the still-opened front door, where Lion came dashing in with Peridot and Steven in tow. Peridot was quick to leap off Lion and land mere feet away from the others, and just  _barely_  avoided slipping on the floor. "Like I was saying,  _Connie_ , we are keeping our key as long as we possibly can. We don't know for sure how easy it will be to go back the way we came, and-"

 

She paused and saw the bubble held by Lapis. "Wait, wait. You already rescued the others?!"

 

Lapis smirked. "Sorry, boss. You literally just missed us pull off this daring rescue."

 

"Oh, thank goodness!" Steven looked beyond relieved as he ran over to join the others. "They're okay! I mean, as okay as being in a bubble can be. So we can go home now, right?!"

 

"Steven, check. Connie, check. Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl, triple check! That's everyone we came back to this clod-forsaken rock for!" Peridot cheerfully confirmed. "Yeah, we're definitely not tossing the key yet. Our final objective is to make it back to our ship, leave, and hopefully never have to see this sorry excuse for a planet again. We don't know how much backtracking we'll have to do, and it's practically guaranteed we're not going back the same way we came. That means it's highly likely we'll need some places unlocked. We should probably get to a location  _not_  so potential death trappy so we can restore our fellow Crystal Gems. After all, I wanna see the looks on their faces when they realize who they've been saved by!"

 

"I guess it would be a stretch to suggest we all fit on Lion," Connie muttered. "He'd be the quick and convenient way to someplace safer."

 

"We shouldn't take Lion if we can help it," Steven advised. "He does get exhausted after a while if we portal-hop with him too much."

 

Lapis looked to Steven before using her wings to ascend slightly. She kept ahold of the bubble containing the remaining Crystal Gems. "What constitutes as "too much"? He's done it maybe… 4 times at most since we got here."

 

"That's when we should start being conservative with him. Besides, Lion isn't always the most consistent when it comes to help." Steven smiled as he looked to Lion, who was some ways ahead of them, prepared to go off on his own again. "No offense, buddy!"

 

"I distinctly recall him getting exhausted after a single warp to the Moon," Peridot noted. "It may be a matter of distance relative from point to point. In which case, I'd say it's highly likely Lion is on the verge of exhaustion, if he isn't already. Homeworld Kindergarten isn't exactly next door to the Diamond Palaces."

 

"That's where you ended up going to heal, of all places?" Bismuth was perplexed, as were the others.

 

"Well, you said we needed a safe and private place to deal Peridot, Bismuth," Steven reminded her. "And what here on Homeworld fits better than a faraway underground defunct Kindergarten?"

 

"I guess that makes sense," Lapis conceded. "I certainly wouldn't have thought to look for you there."

 

"Fair enough," Bismuth agreed. "So, did you two see anyone on your way in here? We just saw the Diamonds go inside where Lapis found you and Connie.

 

"Nope, no Diamonds. Just that weird Pearl nearby my mom's ship," Steven reported. "I was about to say hi, but Peridot pinched me really hard and said to ignore her."

 

"Weird Pearl? Was it not Blue Diamond's?" asked Connie. "Because we've got Yellow Pearl bubbled with us.

 

"Definitely not. In fact, she looked partially cracked," Peridot told them. "And my instinct is just telling me not go anywhere near her. I'm not taking that feeling for granted on a world like this, sorry. I did  _not_  come all the way back here and nearly get crippled just to fail the mission at the end because of a single logistical error."

 

"Sounds creepy just by the description," Bismuth admitted. "There's no reason to go near the ship, anyway. We're going home in the ship we took to get here, Steven."

 

"Ahh, that's right!" Steven realized. "You and Peridot and Lapis didn't have access to Mom's ship. But I'm guessing you hid it someplace pretty far from here, huh?"

 

"Unfortunately," Peridot said with a sigh as she got her bearings. "Tempting as it is to hijack that really weird ship, we'd risk abandoning two very important teammates who currently guard the ship we came here on." She sharply turned to the others. "And keep it a surprise, will you? The last thing I want getting us all captured is an overexcited Steven blowing our cover."

 

That bummed Steven out, knowing he had to be left out of the loop. "Oh, c'mon. I'm standing right here…"

 

"They told me," Connie mentioned. "Before we reconvened, but that's fine. I won't spoil it." She approached Peridot just then to give her a long-overdue hug. "And I owe  _you_  this, now that it won't hurt you. I'm so glad to see you again… it's so cool to see the Crystal Temps reunited! And Lapis made sure to tell me just how far you've come as a leader since then."

 

Peridot briefly looked to Lapis, who just smiled and gave her a thumbs-up before reciprocating Connie's hug. "I'm happy to see you too… and I apologize for not acknowledging your presence earlier. My physical limitations are such a hindrance, especially when I take damage. But, that's all gone now!"

 

She looked across her team excitedly. It still felt like a dream even now, that Peridot was the one leading them to victory. And it was so close within reach.

 

"Now that all the loose ends are tied up, let's head back," Peridot announced. "It seems you three covered a lot of distance since we split, and at this stage we need to be as far away from the Diamonds as possible. So, can at least one of you lead the way back to the concourse? We'll stand a better chance finding a safe place to restore our friends down there."

 

"I'll take the case," Lapis volunteered. "I'll stay in sight, but I want to make sure there's no one in our path just to be safe."

 

"Ah, I did promise I'd let you do reconnaissance," Peridot recalled. "Right, then. Steady pace, Crystal Gems! It's been nice having some room to move around and fresh air to breathe, but we really should take any chance we can at staying out of the Diamonds' line of sight. And this level is sadly that line."

 

"We'll find some other way to cure the gem corruption on Earth," said a resolute Steven. "Without White Diamond. If this is what she thinks is right, then I want no part in it. Blue Diamond told me and Connie how bad they treated Mom… at least we could reason with one of them."

 

"Just remember, Steven, Blue Diamond is no angel," Lapis told him before ascending too high. "Maybe if we're grading on a curve with the others, but that's really generous. I'll just settle for not cursing her name since she helped you and Connie as much as she did."

 

Everyone dashed across the bridge towards the veranda of the concourse, following Lapis' trail.

 

"White Diamond… her name's been thrown around a few times since I came back," Bismuth said, mostly to herself. "I know there was a big part of the war I wasn't around for that nobody could really make sense of. Rose might've done me a favor bubbling me, for all I know. I just can't help but feel… a Diamond-like presence hanging over us, and it ain't Yellow or Blue."

 

"I know I've been your glorified tour guide for this trip, but I barely know anything about White Diamond either," Peridot uneasily admitted. "But when I saw that cracked Pearl… I'm sorry for being a little rough back there, Steven. But I feel like I'm on the verge of another "feeling" become a memory, and it's one that's… just telling me,  _really hard_ , to get as far away from the Diamonds as possible."

 

"I know you're just protecting me," Steven assured her. "Besides, you're probably right. Blue made it sound like she was basically our mom… or, y'know, Pink's mom."

 

Connie looked back to that ominous White Bust less than a mile behind them as she ran along with the others. "Yeah, it sounds like White took everything way too seriously. When Blue thought about all the times Pink was locked in the tower by White, that's when she started coming around."

 

"That suggests the Diamond Authority operates like an extremely dysfunctional family," Peridot surmised. "And not the endearing kind of dysfunctional that our own family goes through at times. I worshiped the ground Yellow Diamond walked on, and I knew the basics about Blue. It makes sense that I never learned about Pink since I didn't know anything about that war or the rebellion while I lived here, but White Diamond…"

 

Peridot also glanced back to the ominous bust that grew ever-smaller behind them as they furthered their distance. "She's been here on Homeworld all this time, I've seen that thing back there that represents her very frequently, but there's not much in the way of hearsay or gossip about her. But sometimes I've seen gems be interviewed that just freeze up and don't say a word if they're asked anything about White Diamond. As if even mentioning her name in the public is a major taboo…"

 

"Almost like she's the one really running the show here on Homeworld, while Yellow and Blue act as her lackeys," Bismuth suggested. "But if other gems are scared to just speak her name, there's gotta be a reason for it."

 

"Yellow and Blue went out of their way to make her happy," Steven recounted. "That's why they got so upset when me and Connie fused; why we got locked in the tower just like Pink Diamond and why my family is in a bubble now. White really didn't like that, apparently."

 

"So, it's her image Homeworld is made in…" Lapis rejoined the conversation, still flying but on a level where she could directly communicate with the others. "It's the fact that no one ever sees her… except the Diamonds, I guess. But they're not telling, and that worries me. That makes it sound like White Diamond is… almost omniscient.

 

Peridot gulped at the idea. "I really hope that isn't the case; otherwise we're gonna have a  _much_  harder time getting out of here than I anticipated." She looked to Lapis. "Anything up ahead? Are we in the clear?"

 

"As far as I can tell, yes," Lapis confirmed. "But I'm keeping my pouch open just in case." She briefly smiled to Peridot. "Thanks for getting me to refine my style, Peridot. You weren't kidding when you told me this world is devoid of usable water. I feel like you just taught me a valuable survival method that I can put to use in the future, once this is all over."

 

Lapis usually wasn't so candid about her feelings, so Peridot felt very touched to hear that. "You're very welcome. I'm just sorry I didn't have the opportunity to see that much of it."

 

"Hey, now! Let's not talk like we're not goin' back home today!" Bismuth called out to the two. "Let's just be prepared for  _anything_  so we don't lose everything we worked for."

 

"That's right!" Steven agreed, picking up his pace. "We tried our best to work with Homeworld, and they broke the deal. Or maybe just White Diamond did. Doesn't matter! We're getting outta here, out of Homeworld, and nobody's gonna stop us!"

 

The group was within seconds of reaching the part of the veranda where the roads diverged; where entrance to the concourse was dead ahead, and out of the Diamonds' direct line of sight. Just as the Crystal Gems thought they had escaped the worst possible danger of Homeworld, everyone stopped short as blinding ball of white light emitted from the branch-off point. And when the light faded, a wave of shock and horror rushed through every body of the crew when it was revealed their literal roadblock was none other than the cracked Pearl they had seen in the distance.

 

"Can't let you do that, Starlight."

 

"Crud, I should have figured she would be able to see us," Peridot cursed under her breath. Being this close to White Pearl now, though, the leader of the Crystal Gems only partially held down a shudder that coursed through her body. It was more than the fear of being caught by the worst possible enemy that caused it…

 

"So it  _is_  you in there, White Diamond," Steven declared. Calling him "Starlight" was a dead giveaway. "Forget it. If you won't negotiate, then we've got no reason to be here anymore! I'm taking my friends… my  _family_ , and we are going home!"

 

"You're making a grave mistake, my dear," said White Pearl/Diamond. "But I will be merciful. Go back to your room, and I will consider sparing these reprobates you call a family."

 

Connie stood in front of Steven, guarding him on reflex even though she no longer had her sword. "Don't listen to her, Steven! She's just telling you what you want to hear!"

 

Steven didn't look the least bit convinced. "It's okay, Connie. I already know she's lying. If she's the one who made the order after we fused at the Era 3 Ball, and since you were  _there_ ," he said and pointed to White Pearl. "That means Blue and Yellow knew you were there, and they wouldn't disobey your orders. You've only got yourself to blame, White. We could've made this work."

 

Peridot was able to hear Steven's speech. She wanted to give out a cutesy "Way to go, Steven!", but she didn't want to let everyone else know what happened when the two were alone earlier. And even if she did, a certain memory was returning to her as she listened to White Diamond speak through this battered, abused Pearl. And it was every bit as terrifying as everything else she remembered today, if not more so. She gave Lapis and Bismuth quick, pleading glances, which both caught and quickly understood.

 

"I will say this only one more time:  **TO. YOUR. ROOM.** _NOW!_ **"**

 

The ground far beneath them began to quake with every emphasized word. Her patience had run out. Connie looked behind to see the White Diamond bust, that ominous yet so-far harmless structure begin to shake along with the rumblings of the earth below.

 

She gasped and gently elbowed Peridot to get her attention. The leader was shaken from her inner paralysis and followed Connie's gaze. She saw the color drain from Connie's face, and she shared the same terrified sensation. The bust of White Diamond was no mere decoration, or even some obscure residence or lair. It was a ship, the same type as her fellow Diamonds' crafts.

 

"Oh, my stars… she's been watching us this entire time," Peridot realized. "She'll hear everything we say, see everything we do."

 

"So, she knows where we're trying to go," Steven assumed, backing up apprehensively from White Pearl until he whipped around and saw the White Diamond ship slowly approach them. The ground continued to shake, making it hard for the group to maintain their footing on a  _very_  bad area to be when earthquake-like conditions were happening.

 

The Crystal Gyms were stuck in a pincer formation. Running back would bring them right to the ominous ship, but White Pearl was guarding the exit they sought. Lapis hesitated to make a move; she was in no better a position than her grounded friends, as she had no cover in this area to evade aerial attacks. She was glad she kept her pouch open; even though White Diamond and her Pearl proxy kept a close eye on each member of the Crystal Gems, just daring them to make a move, Lapis knew if they just happened upon a miracle - a little good fortune for the PeriLuck crew, she'd find her opening to act.

 

"That's  _enough_ , White!"

 

Lapis Lazuli did not expect that miracle to come in the form of Blue Diamond, who saw White Diamond's ship blasted from behind by a blue ball of aura. It looked like it didn't do any damage, but it did distract the Diamond, as the ship turned to face one of her own, turning on her.

 

_"Blue… that was unprecedented."_

 

The voice of White Diamond no longer came through White Pearl, but rather the ship, as it was much larger and echoed against the many structures of Homeworld's metropolis. White Pearl still held her stance regardless, but it was obvious to everyone that the real White Diamond was somewhere in that ship. A proxy in the form of a Pearl was nothing of a threat by comparison.

 

"That's our opening," Lapis whispered to herself before she quickly turned around, and conjured a fierce stream of ice water that hit White Pearl directly. Lapis smirked, but held her fire steady; she refused to let the proxy get in any sort of offensive move.

 

She also knew not to raise her voice now that the ship had been distracted. Lapis briefly wondered if Blue Diamond realized she was sacrificing herself for them…

 

The rest of the Crystal Gems smiled with gratitude at their savior. Bismuth seemed to read Lapis' mind, as she took the initiative to rush over and smash the frozen White Pearl with her hammer arm to dislodge her from their exit point. In haste, she took another crack at the helpless White Pearl and send the frozen-solid gem careening off the ledge to the deep depths below, where no one could make out what was actually down there.

 

Connie wasn't bothered by Bismuth's actions and ran along with her; she knew the war veteran was eliminating a major source of danger that could pursue them if she recovered. Bismuth backed her up and the pair entered the concourse.

 

Steven, predictably, had a much harder time moving forward as he was stunned with Bismuth's actions. After everything they talked about… the most uncomfortable subject matter of all, Steven witnessed Bismuth basically execute a gem. There was no way White Pearl would survive a fall like that, and being frozen made her helpless to save herself. The boy's empathy levels welled up to overflowing levels, and Blue Diamond's tear-inducing aura while she tried in vain to resist White Diamond didn't help matters.

 

"How… how could she…?"

 

Peridot had not run ahead because she knew better. A leader's job wasn't just to unite her team or follow her example; there was also the most important rule of making sure everyone was safe. And she had a feeling Steven would be too emotionally vulnerable to just run past this.

 

Even though Lapis was still present for reasons uncertain, she was airborne and fixated on Blue Diamond's struggle while conjuring up a new technique she learned while training on Earth. Even if she was standing right there next to them, watching their every move, Peridot couldn't let that stop her from doing what had to be done. She rushed up to Steven, rested her hands over his shoulders, and leaned in to kiss him. It was a modest and brief kiss, but heartfelt enough to jolt Steven back into reality.

 

"Uh? P-Peridot…?!" Steven didn't even know what to say; his mind was too scrambled to think straight, but he knew that kiss was real. However, despite the loving kiss she offered, Peridot's face was in stark contrast; firm, intense, and authoritative.

 

"Steven, I want you to listen to me," she ordered as she moved her hands down to interlace their fingers. "I admire your compassion for all living things; I really do. But you need to understand that you don't always get what you want in life! Sometimes, bad things just  _happen_ , and there's nothing you can do about it! There's no fate or destiny to it! What I'm trying to tell you is that you  _can't_ save everyone, Steven Universe. That's already a statistical impossibility, given the amount of lives lost already before we were even born. We are running for our lives right now;  _do you understand me?_  The odds are stacked so high in  _their_  favor, I'm honestly surprised we made it this far. If you let your pacifism interfere with this mission, I can personally guarantee you we aren't making it out of here alive. Not all of us, anyway."

 

Steven took in the words, and from how Peridot could tell, he wasn't taking them well. He understood it wasn't his place to speak until Peridot finished. His leader let out a sigh and tried a slightly gentler approach.

 

"I know it isn't fair, Steven. I wish it was. But in a situation like this, your refusal to execute versus an enemy who will not hesitate to execute, a  _Diamond_  no less, are mutually exclusive paths in the decisions we're forced to make. We're in no position for you to try and talk peace, and trust me, if a Diamond is chasing us down, we can't spare even a second to dwell on unpleasant things you had to do to survive.  _Always keep moving._  You've got people on Earth who miss you like crazy, especially your paternal unit. Sympathy for the devil is a sentiment that will ruin  _everything_ , Steven. You're putting everyone in danger acting like this, do you understand?"

 

Steven barely had a voice to him when he replied, "I… yeah, I do, but-"

 

" _No buts._  Steven, I'm not talking to you as your friend. I'm not talking to you as your love interest. I'm  _definitely_ not talking to you as your little twin sister figure."

 

Yes, on the odd occasion certain gems would refer to the pair like this.

 

"I'm speaking to you, Steven, as your leader. Until we get Garnet reformed, you're my responsibility. I will never leave you behind, Steven, but right now all you're doing is dragging everyone else down! So snap out of it before I… I dunno, kiss you again? Doesn't feel right to slap you-" Peridot stopped herself from taking this conversation off the rails when she was only now getting Steven close to the door to freedom. Sentimentality like this was counter-productive for what Peridot aimed to achieve here.

 

"You know what, Steven? Back in my Kindergarten, you were "ooh"ing and "ahh"ing at everything I told you I did as a legit Crystal Gems leader. If you really meant that you can see me and respect me as a leader, then show it already! I'm not asking you to approve of how certain teammates dispatch enemies; I'm telling you to  _not spit in their face by mourning over someone who just tried to end your life!_   _Are you listening to me, Steven?!_ _"_

 

Peridot got her response with a receipt on that kiss she just gave Steven before going on her tirade. He was clearly still apprehensive, but conceded to his leader's will. It only lingered for a few seconds before Steven pulled away. "I always listen to you, Peridot. I always like hearing what you have to say. I'm… I'm gonna make this up to you guys, but I really really really want you all to come back to Earth with me… alive. So I'll just… suck it up and listen to my leader. Let's go home, Peridot!"

 

Peridot could tell that Steven was behaving similarly to her; he was straining himself in suppressing his usual quirks. But in the end, Steven Universe was steadfast. It was a work in progress, but that was all the time Peridot could spare for a pep talk. Blue Diamond was not faring well against White Diamond at all, and behind her, it looked like Yellow Diamond was also present behind Blue, but conflicted on what action to take: help Blue Diamond, or obey White like she was always meant to.

 

"You think you can make it there without holding my hand?" Peridot asked him, now playfully teasing her cherished center of gravity. "I need to make sure Lapis isn't planning on some stupid sacrifice over there; Bismuth and Connie had the right idea on what to do here."

 

Steven blushed and waved his hand at her dismissively. "I think I'll manage. You two better be right behind me!" And with that, he finally ran and made it into the concourse under the cover of thousands, if not millions of Homeworld citizens.

 

Now it was Lapis' turn. Peridot wasn't as concerned, because she knew Lapis had an infinitely more level head on her shoulders than Steven ever would, but she couldn't read her old roommate. She was lingering for some reason. "Lapis! What's the hold-up?!"

 

"It's my new technique, don't you see?" Lapis asked her "I'm making mist! Fog! It'll cover for us!"

 

"It's just you and me here now, Lapis," Peridot pointed out. "You're invested in something back there and that fog is just an excuse. Very impressive work, but just an excuse."

 

"I just don't understand… why Blue Diamond is helping us," Lapis admitted. "Don't you see the position she's in right now? She had nothing to gain and everything to lose for doing this! She doesn't even know who we are!"

 

"She knows we're Steven's family, Lapis. That's all she needs to know, and same to you. You may never know the whole story, but that's just how it is sometimes. Respect the sacrifice for what it is, Lapis Lazuli. If she hadn't interfered, we'd all be shattered right now. We'll pay our respects when we get home." Peridot extended her hand to the still-airborne Lapis. "Come on. Trust me… I'm sure you shouldn't be seeing all of this.

 

For the first time, Lapis felt Blue Diamond's mutual tears as she was physically, mentally, and emotionally tortured by White Diamond. She was quick to brush them away and nod to Peridot, though her eyes were glued to Blue Diamond. She expressed her gratitude as quietly as she could while she descended; the fog she created shot up her pouch as if it was a vacuum. Just before her fingers reached Peridot's, her message was softly sent to Blue Diamond, both vocally and mentally. And somehow, Blue Diamond heard the words as well.

 

 

_"For your great and noble sacrifice, I thank you…_

 

 _…_ _my Diamond."_

* * *

 

 

Peridot and Lapis finally regrouped with Steven, and Connie and Bismuth as well soon after. They had no time to ask why certain people took so long to take cover, but Peridot was quick to sprint from the rear up to the front of the pack. She looked to Connie and Bismuth.

 

"I'm proud of you both; you're the only two who already understood the gravity of our situation," she told them. "We need to find a good place to regroup; now that we're officially being pursued, we all need to be on the same page!"

 

"Understood! And thank you!" Connie shouted. Bismuth nodded to her little friend knowingly.

 

"You know this place better than us, Peri," the war veteran reminded her leader. "Just point out a place you think is safe and we'll fall in line, ma'am!"

 

Of course, Peridot only had a vague idea of this particular concourse's layout because it wasn't one she often visited for work. The amount of traffic in this concourse was staggering, and it didn't help that the majority of them were Quartz soldiers.

 

"O-okay, it looks like we're in Terminal 1L4N," Peridot reported as she examined her surroundings. "I see a rest area in the center with a map coming up ahead. Not the best for cover, but we're not sticking around here for long, anyway!"

 

"Got it!" Connie understood.

 

Luckily, even though it was impossible for the group to maintain a consistent chain, they were close enough to each other not to get lost. Soon enough, all of them rested on a bench, catching their breath, or alternatively suppressing their fear of White Diamond.

 

Peridot typed furiously into her tablet, formulating a plan. She decided now that she had a new memory inadvertently unlocked, it was important to let others know about it. This would be crucial to their survival. But first…

 

"Amethyst? What is wrong with you? Come out, already. It's safe now."

 

"Pearl, wake up! Come on, you gotta wake up! We could really use your help! Are you okay?! Please be okay!"

 

"Garnet… why won't you answer me? It's been over two days now. Y-you don't look damaged; I mean you, Ruby and Sapphire…"

 

Peridot turned to look at Lapis, Connie, and Steven respectively. By now the daytime had almost come to an end, so another cycle since the fallout at the ball was about to commence. "It's been that long and they're still out of commission? Who poofed them?"

 

"Someone who put you on the receiving end of it a few days ago," Connie said calmly. "Yellow Diamond."

 

"Okay, I feel their pain, then. But… hey, Bismuth, Lapis, how long was I out?" Peridot was genuinely curious.

 

"Most of the day, since nighttime to evening the next day," Bismuth reported. "In other words, you reformed quicker than these four."

 

Peridot nodded, and made a quick gesture to save her progress on her tablet before looking to the three holding gemstones.

 

"My best guess is they got a  _really_  bad direct hit," she offered. "But that's okay! Did you know there's gemstone regeneration stations all over this terminal, and all others? It's like the equivalent of bathrooms in those big store chains!"

 

Adorable as it was to see Peridot's unbridled enthusiasm, Bismuth wanted to get straight to the point. "So, where's the nearest one? We're gonna need all the back-up we can get if a Diamond's on our butts. When do we need to start running again?"

 

"Literally, as soon as we restore the original Crystal Gems," Peridot replied. "And we're in luck. There's a station right over by the left corridor." She sat up. "Let's get moving, people."

 

"Right… we're not out of the woods yet," Connie agreed as she stood, holding Pearl's gemstone close to her chest. Steven grasped Ruby and Sapphire's in each palm, while Lapis held Amethyst's securely with both hands without embracing it.

* * *

 

 

"I still can't believe our luck," Peridot remarked as she watched the gemstones of Ruby and Sapphire glow in the restorative machine, indicating they were nearly ready to come out. "A closed kiosk in this dinky little corner with security measures made from some just-emerged Peridot."

 

"These definitely didn't exist in my time," Bismuth commented, keeping an eye on Pearl with Connie. "How is it that these things are so common? If we weren't under a time crunch, heck, I'd steal one and take it with us."

 

Peridot smirked. "You could always dismantle it and carry the pieces in a bag. I guarantee you I'll be able to rebuild  _and_  improve upon it when we get home. That's just a silly challenge I'm issuing you; take it or leave it."

 

"Well! Now I'm feeling mighty tempted. We can go into Bismuth for ourselves!"

 

Everyone shared a brief laugh at that, and they felt so much better for it. A heavy weight evaporated above them, and everyone felt much more serene. No one knew how much they needed that.

 

"As for why there's a lot of them, well… I thought it was obvious. If a gem for any reason poofs and they have duties to perform, these will speed up the regeneration process. It's a rarity for Peridots to be in there. This is for the average and fragile-grade gems who can't afford to sit around as a stone all day." Now Peridot looked smug. "Now, it's a way we can help our friends directly."

 

Lapis looked over to her leader - she was the one checking on Amethyst's progress. "Peridot, it looked like you were about to tell us something before you noticed the gemstones. Care to share?"

 

"Might as well save it for when we're all officially back together," answered a yawning Peridot. "I really don't like having to repeat myself."

 

As if on cue, the restoration machine for the Ruby and Sapphire stones emitted a very strong glow, prompting the machine to cease its function and open up so the gems could reform properly. Everyone waited with baited breath as the red and blue figures from the gem quickly merged together, and finally, the original Crystal Team leader Garnet was back, donning something of a new look with a new color scheme to her clothes and golden shades shaped like a bisected top part of a star. The two-tone accent migrated from her legs to her hips and lower abdomen.

 

Her first reaction was to assume a defensive position and grimace, but soon realized she was no longer in the royal ballroom. She carefully inspected her surroundings, as they were not familiar to her. Like Bismuth and Lapis, Homeworld had changed too much for Garnet to recognize in the present day. She found a delighted star-brandishing Peridot to her left. To her right, Steven, Lapis, Connie, and Bismuth were there to welcome her back. Instinctively, she knelt down to hug Steven before looking to the others to speak.

 

"I foresee a great deal of exposition coming very soon," she said coolly. "But it's a great relief to see you all again. I don't need future vision to see you all have worked long and hard to make it this far."

 

"It's so great to see you again, Garnet!" Peridot squealed, and since she was the closest to the newly-reformed gem, she did not hesitate to greet her with a hug. Sure, it wasn't the behavior of a professional leader, but right now Peridot just wanted to behave like a friend.

 

"We're gonna explain everything to you guys once Amethyst and Pearl come back too," Connie assured Garnet. "A whole lot happened… and even I don't know the half of it."

 

"Don't know the half of what? Oh, Connie, you look like you've been sweating up a storm…"

 

"PEARL!" Connie turned around to hug Pearl in a way very much like Peridot's.

 

"Man, are you a sight for sore eyes!" Bismuth cried out with happiness as she have Pearl a much more modest hug.

 

Pearl too had an entirely new outfit; one that differed from her original even more so than Garnet's by far. The shoes were the same, at least, only colored pink now. Pearl's legs were almost entirely covered in muted blue leggings, and a lofty cyan blazer adorned with a yellow star on her back over a teal top. She looked much more relaxed and casual.

 

"Speak for yourself!" Pearl laughed, overjoyed by the warm welcoming committee, that only for a moment supplanted her primary line of thought being "where are we and what happened?".

 

"I guess it's our job to give Amethyst a hug when she comes out, right, Lapis?" Steven rhetorically asked the gem beside him. "Garnet and Pearl got some love, so…"

 

" _Pssht_. I never agreed to hugging anyone," Lapis said in a purely exaggerated snobbish tone, and even turned her nose up. "You guys are a bunch of saps."

 

"Aw, c'mon! Let Amethyst know she's loved and we miss her!" Steven urged.

 

Lapis rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I can do that without the hugging, thank you."

 

"Nah, you're just too shy," Peridot deduced, not having yet let go of her grasp on Garnet, who didn't mind at all. "Or too insecure. Whichever the most common Earth reason is."

 

"Don't  _even_ ," Lapis huffed. "Steven can hug enough for-"

 

**"SURPRISE HUG ATTACK!"**

 

Since Lapis had her back turned, she never noticed Amethyst reforming - as everyone else clearly noticed, and had a good laugh at poor Lapis' expense when she screamed out of shock and would have gone airborne it wasn't for Amethyst's body impeding them.

 

"Not-so-surprise hug attack!" Steven cheered as he hugged them both.

 

"You get a pass," Lapis told Steven flatly before she resumed looking completely frazzled and flustered. "The rest of you suck, forever."

 

Finally, with everyone reunited, the Crystal Gems shared a moment of hearty laughter.

 

But Peridot, now diligent with her duty and not just content with being comic relief, brought everyone to attention. "Hey, everyone. Y'know I'm as choked up and happy that we're all finally together again, but we need to settle down."

 

Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst looked surprised at Peridot taking control of the conversation and being professional about it. Even the likes of Lapis and Connie were surprised how leader-like the little gem had become. After being healed, there didn't seem to be a single hiccup in her resolve.

 

"We need Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst acclimated to the present day as soon as possible," Peridot explained with a straight face. "And… we might be here a while, so let's begin with an official greeting. So…"

 

The aforementioned three stared at her intently, while the rest of the group kicked back and prepared to listen to Peridot's story. She usually told the most interesting stories by the campfire, anyway, so the gem was a natural public speaker.

 

"Hey, the Great and Lovable Peridot here. I'm also known as the Leader of the Crystal Gems, navigator, space ship designer, technician, among other titles. But call me whatever you want, because I cannot overstate how happy we are to finally have you back."

 

 

* * *

 

 

**[ I SHINE ONCE LIKE A SHOOTING STAR LOSING SIGHT**

**YOU SEE, MAN, THE DIFFFERENCE BETWEEN YOU AND I**

**IS IMMA KEEP DOING WHAT I DO**

**CAUSE IT'S DO OR DIE… ]**


	7. Twist of Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the Crystal Gems reach the homestretch in their journey back to their spaceship, they learn just how dangerous and destructive White Diamond can be, and at no point can they afford to let their guard down even when it seems the coast is clear. 
> 
> Sapphire confides in Peridot a disturbing imminent future for how the rest of the mission will play out. Armed with this knowledge, Peridot now has to make a very tough choice.

"… and that concludes my report."

 

"Wow. Mind is  _totally_  blown," remarked Amethyst. "Can I shrink back? I think I need a week to "get" all of this."

 

"A Diamond sacrificed herself to save you all…" Of course Pearl was stuck on that detail. "How surreal..."

 

"I agree we've heard and seen some really messed up stuff while we rescued you all. Apparently, rescuing you guys when we found you was the  _dullest_  part of this mission so far." Peridot sighed. "But we'll have time to figure this stuff out when we make it to the ship and get out of here. There's no doubt in my mind that White Diamond is still looking for us. We can't get complacent, and once we leave this spot, I really don't want any more rest stops. This is the final stage of the mission, but it can still fall apart if  _she_  sees us."

 

"You mentioned before that once you broke her line of sight, you no longer saw immediate signs of pursuit," Garnet mentioned. "You also have new information on White Diamond you've yet to tell anyone here about. I believe now is the time."

 

"Ugh, right…" Peridot was getting exhausted but she pressed onward.

 

"It happened when White Pearl impeded our progress and White Diamond had us caught in a pincer formation. That moment triggered an old memory… probably when I started developing a sense of self-preservation. This was back when I still worked here. It seemed like sacrilege to even say White Diamond's name out loud, let alone gossip about her. Then, one day, I came across one of the other Peridots I worked with, but there was something wrong with her. She had lost all color in her body, dead eyes, and a really forced smile. She looked a lot like that White Pearl did. I wanted to inquire about this unprecedented alteration, but she acted like I didn't exist. Probably for the best, since she really creeped me out ever since."

 

Peridot held out her bubble containing Yellow Pearl. "I  _finally_  got some info from my manager about her, because she stopped coming to work entirely. She told me this Peridot had been caught in something really scandalous, and it involved the Diamonds. When I told my boss that this didn't look like anything Yellow Diamond would have done, because her style is more straightforward, she finally mentioned White Diamond to me, and that the Peridot had been subjected to something called  _pallification_ \- and that's why she lost all of her color and why she lost all sentience. She called it the ultimate punishment; right up there with execution, though that's at least quick. When a gem is made pallid, they're dead in all but bodily function, and that's entirely controlled as well. I'd feel a chill any time I even  _saw_  a pallid in a crowd far away from me."

 

"So, you are saying there's a chance we will come across these "pallids", but you have not yet said what makes them a danger to us," Garnet criticized.

 

Peridot looked a little hurt and downtrodden, but picked herself back up quickly enough. "Now that I saw that White Pearl, up close and personal, I understood why I could never be calm with one in the room. The pallids serve as extra sets of eyes for White Diamond."

 

That statement made everyone go dead silent.

 

"Think about it!" Peridot urged her audience. "Apparently, she never leaves that giant ship shaped like her head, and it's been established that she outranks Blue and Yellow Diamond, but how does she rule Homeworld with an iron fist if she never leaves? It's because she doesn't need to,  _ever_ , as long as she can create pallids from any gem she desires. She supplants their consciousness, disregarding the well-being of that gem, and then uses the body to act on her desires. She used that White Pearl to make sure we couldn't get away when we were up on the bridge over the metropolis. She would've had us if Blue Diamond hadn't distracted her."

 

Lapis looked notably more sympathetic about that topic more so than any other, but she needed to ask something. "Peridot, what do you think is going to happen?"

 

"These terminals are filled to the brim with gems of all kinds that commute to and from their jobs!" Peridot pointed out into the distance where the crowded concourse actually was. The Crystal Gems managed to luck out finding such an isolated place that was never used that they were able to use for as long as they did. But that would just balance out the very long, non-stop dash to the terminal where they started from. "And I'm getting the impression that pallification isn't some complex process; she could do this to anyone, at anytime, anywhere. How do you all feel about trying to make it back to the ship when the hallways are stuffed with mindless White Diamond eyes that want us shattered?!"

 

Garnet thought this over. "You could be right. We need to move as soon as possible, and be very discreet. It will be a challenge, but Peridot is right about the importance of sticking together. I suggest either a very subtle chain, or spaced out smaller groups of two to three."

 

"So, we'll never know if there's a pallid just hiding in the crowd monitoring us. What should we do if one sees us?" asked a very worried Pearl.

 

"We make a break for it; preferably we head for a lower floor so the pallid's line of sight will break," Garnet answered. "The longer we hold out here, the greater the chance there is that she finds us. Is everyone ready to move out?"

 

Steven, Connie, Lapis, and Bismuth stood immediately. Amethyst just shrugged before she stood up. "Hey, I'm ready to outwit a bunch of glorified walkers anytime."

 

And lastly, Pearl stood. "There is so much wrong with all of this… but we'll work it out, I suppose. We always do. I'll have time to cry about this when I'm back on Earth."

 

While Peridot had been standing the whole time, she reluctantly tapped Garnet's leg. "Before we go, Garnet… there's a couple of things I'd like to speak to you about in private. I assure you it's all relevant to our mission." She looked extremely nervous to be asking this of Garnet, but smiled when the original leader gave her a thumbs up.

 

Garnet looked to the others. "All of you, be prepared to go when I return. I need to speak with Peridot for a moment."

 

"Maybe take some peeks out there and get a lay of the land so we'll know what we're getting into. Just remember we're headed due east," Peridot added before following Garnet to a dark, quiet corner. It almost seemed like Garnet wanted to tell Peridot something important as well… but maybe it was her imagination.

 

"You've done a good job, leading in my place," Garnet told her immediately. "You are a gem full of surprises; never in any future vision of mine have I seen you act as bold and mature as you have for this mission."

 

"W-wow, thanks," Peridot giggled with a blush. "That means so much coming from you. That's actually one of the two things I meant to talk to you about."

 

"I have a feeling I know what you're about to say, but go ahead."

 

Peridot bowed to Garnet. "Now that you're back, it is only right that I relinquish the title of leadership back to its rightful owner. It was a fluke that I even became one in the first place, and… I trust you'll do a better job than me getting us through this last step."

 

"It was not a fluke at all, Peridot. You've proved yourself many times over how worthy you are as a Crystal Gem, and I feel you've made a step forward into a future where you will become so much more than just "a leader". That isn't the future vision talking, for the record."

 

"I feel like you're not the first person who's said that to me lately," Peridot mumbled. "And I don't understand one bit of that. I mean, I'm flattered…"

 

"I will not revoke your leadership unless that is what you truly want," Garnet decided. "This has been your mission all along, Peridot. You brought two gems who seemed completely incompatible together and made them not only well-functioning teammates, but now close friends. Your knowledge and planning founded this mission to begin with. I'm sure you've made mistakes. But don't forget that sometimes, I'm not as good as they make me out to be, either."

 

She gently patted Peridot's hair. "You've been through a lot, and should you wish to talk about it with me when we return to Earth, my door is always open. I would be happy to help you hone your leadership skills as well; it's clear that having only one leader figure in this team can lead to catastrophic events, but you've made the best of them, Peridot. Personally, I vote to keep you on as leader for the duration of this mission." Then Garnet slid down her visor and winked at Peridot with one of her eyes.

 

"O-oh, oh dear… w-well, uh, I thank you for the vote of confidence!" Peridot never before sounded more grateful to hear such praise. "You've said all these nice things about me, and now I'm gonna ruin it with my second topic…"

 

Garnet simply smiled at Peridot and nodded to her. "I'm listening."

 

Peridot's face grew sterner and more serious now. "Garnet… I'll preface this by saying I  _really_  hate asking this of you. Really, I do. I'll come off as such a clod for asking but I swear it's for a good cause and  _brrrrrrhgh_ , okay, okay."

 

She straightened herself out to speak formally. "Garnet, until we're in the clear and can handle the leftovers of whatever ambush comes our way, or if we can permanently blind these pallids somehow… I have to ask that you cease and desist your fusion on the grounds that you know how taboo your particular fusion is, and you'll be extremely easy for White Diamond to spot. I-I just… I don't know how to make you not stand out as Garnet. I wish it wasn't like this on Homeworld, but there's nothing we can do about that. Fusions draw attention; that's how it's always been."

 

"Hm…"

 

"I-I know you just got married, Ruby and Sapphire, but no one expected this stupid Diamond attack to crash your wedding! I just want to do whatever it takes to make sure my teammates are safe, and Garnet herself is just a big red target sign. I don't want to take that risk, okay? Please understand…"

 

"Your points are valid," Garnet acknowledged. "Your motivations are sound, and above all else, you are my leader. You certainly talked like a leader just now. So, who am I to tell you no?"

 

Peridot felt herself nearly faint. Garnet sounded 100% behind her on everything, and that's something she never could have predicted would come true. She covered her mouth as the tall and mighty Garnet stood across from her no more: now it was Ruby and Sapphire, hand-in-hand smiling at Peridot. They were roughly her size, which was kind of a nice change of pace.

 

"Oh, thank the stars," Peridot sighed with relief.

 

"We're trusting you on this, Peri," Ruby declared, pointing at her.

 

"You've really impressed us, Dot," Sapphire said softly.

 

"I see what you two did there."

* * *

 

 

Once Peridot briefed the team on why Ruby and Sapphire broke their fusion, they formulated a plan to head east. 2F5L was the terminal they sought. Fortunately, after so much running around, they were starting to close in.

 

The strategy the Crystal Gems opted for was the Buddy System, of all things. They walked along single file as best they could, with the lead buddy of the pair constantly holding the hand of their partner. At the head of the group was Pearl and Connie, followed by Bismuth and Lapis, Steven and Amethyst, and Peridot brought up the rear caught in the middle between Ruby and Sapphire. She insisted on this because she knew oh-so well the couple's penchant for flirting even at the most inappropriate of times. There were also the instances where the two fused unintentionally at the worst possible time, and of all times and places, having it happen here would just be the worst.

 

"Perhaps you'd best be careful, Dot," Sapphire teased. "All three of us just might fuse on accident."

 

"Nice try, Sapphire, but I already know I can't fuse with anybody. It's the "gift" that come from being a pathetic Era 2," Peridot countered.

 

"What, is that Era 2 a crutch or something for you?" Ruby asked. She was the one leading the line. "You're capable of plenty of stuff; who cares if you're way younger than the rest of us and made out of lesser… stuff, y'know? Stop being such a whiner!"

 

"Ruby,  _hush_ ," Sapphire ordered. "Concentrate on keeping your pace up so we don't lose the others."

 

"I wasn't even whining…." Peridot noted. "Just stating an objective fact."

 

"Don't mind her; she's been in a sour mood since our wedding was crashed," Sapphire assured her. "Besides, we've always wanted to get to know you better. There haven't been many opportunities for us to meet like this. I know Ruby wanted the same; otherwise we wouldn't have split as easily as we did."

 

"Yeah, um. I'm sorry for giving Garnet a hard time about you know. Y'know, asking Garnet not to be fused when I first joined the team…" Peridot felt it was pertinent to at least apologize for these old transgressions.

 

"Man, you're digging up that old relic?" You're really reaching there, Peri."

 

Ruby was even worse at masking her emotions than Peridot was. Now Peridot sort of understood why she could easily frustrate her friends at times. "Wow, passive-aggressive much? Ruby, are you  _sure_  you're not mad at me for splitting you two up? I swear it's only going to be until we reach the 2F5L terminal, then boom, go back to being Garnet forever."

 

_"Rrrrrggh…"_

 

She even made weird frustrated sounds like Peridot. Which the gem herself took notice to.

 

"It's- not really, just this whole stupid situation," Ruby admitted. "And  _why_  is it so full of gems here? We're getting squeezed against the wall by these dumb worker drones every other second!"

 

"S-sorry, this is sort of analogous to "rush hour" traffic on Earth," Peridot explained. "It sucks, I know. But this is our best way to cover ourselves, you gotta admit. The few pallids I've seen haven't even looked in our direction. That all might change once the herd thins out… but it's fine, we'll be fine…"

 

Sapphire noticed Peridot's hands started to quiver. "It's okay to be scared, you know. Even leaders aren't infallible."

 

"I've already been the hugest coward to ever be a leader several times today," Peridot grumbled. "What exactly do the two of you even see in me?"

 

"If I were to list those things, we'd be here all night," Sapphire said with a quiet laugh.

 

"I see your willpower."

 

Both Sapphire and Peridot looked to Ruby. "Uh, you do?"

 

"I'm admitting it, okay!" Ruby huffed. "Your tenacity is admirable. You put your all in everything you do. We've never seen a gem adapt so quickly and so… so…"

 

"Thoroughly?" Sapphire supplied.

 

"Y-yeah, that! We've been on Earth for thousands of years and there are still some Earth customs we have trouble with. And as Garnet, well, you know how she does. You haven't even been on Earth for a year, and when we look at you, it's like Earth was always your home! It just makes me ask,  _grrgh_ , why couldn't I do it like you do?!"

 

"Well, unlike the clods we're trying to fit through here,  _we_  are distinctive individuals. When you look at all these gems we're just leaving behind on this dead rock, you should be proud of yourself that you made it to where you are now," said Peridot. "I mean, forget me,  _you_  got married! I didn't even know that was a thing until your wedding."

 

"Would you like to be married one day?" Sapphire asked with a smile. "It may be the closest you'll ever get to experiencing fusion. Although…"

 

"Y'know Sapphy, if Stevonnie can exist, why can't-"

 

"I never said anything of the sort, Sweetums," Sapphire stated. "I've still never had a premonition about that kind of fusion. I'm not sure why…"

 

"I just  _love_  how you two talk like I'm not  _right in between you_ …"

 

Both Ruby and Sapphire shared a laugh, stifled by their hands so as not to attract attention.

 

Peridot just groaned and sighed - it was not fun being in the middle of the chain with Ruby firmly pulling one arm forward while dragging Sapphire behind her. And curses, Peridot forgot she could  _levitate_.

 

Just then, from the corner of her eye, she spotted something  _white_. Panicking, she turned her head around to see an alarming number of pallid gems, of many varieties. And they were coming in a steady stream, walking at a faster pace than their colored counterparts that would land them right on top of this 3-gem buddy system within minutes.

 

Upon closer inspection, Peridot noticed some of the more prolific pallid gem types would indiscriminately touch whatever non-pallid gems were in their radius. Just with the single touch of a shoulder, she witnessed an Aquamarine's color drain away from her body until she was just completely monochrome like the rest of the hive mind. Her eyes became glassy and lifeless and bore an unusually large smile, just like the rest.

 

"Psst! Hey! You two!" Peridot whispered.

 

"I saw it," Sapphire said, cutting to the chase. "Only just now. Forgive me."

 

"What're you-" Ruby looked behind her and saw the white current among the colored sea of people spreading like a disease coming right towards them. She covered her mouth, because she wanted to  _scream_.

 

"We need to warn the others," Peridot realized. "Oh  _stars_ , how are we going to pull this off when we're…" She trailed off when she looked to Ruby. "Ruby…? Wasn't Amethyst right ahead of you?"

 

"Huh?" Ruby looked ahead and saw no Amethyst. Somehow the gem traffic severed the connection the moment they weren't paying attention. "Oh  _no_.  _No_. I screwed up, I screwed up, I screwed up…!"

 

"There was nothing we could have done about it, Ruby," Sapphire said, trying to ease her worries. "I hate to say this, but we need to break apart. Ruby, you need to warn the others. If it took me this long to notice we're on the verge of being ambushed, it'll be too late for the rest of them."

 

"Why just me?!" Ruby fumed as quietly as she could.

 

"Because, if you try to find them dragging the two of us around, we're going to be mowing gems down, just inviting White Diamond to take a free shot at us," Peridot explained with barely-contained aggravation. "I'm just glad you suggested this before I did, Sapphire."

 

Sapphire nodded. "I knew you would appreciate the gesture." She turned to focus on Ruby. "Now, Ruby, listen to me.  _Listen_  to me."

 

"I-I am listening…"

 

" _Really_  listen to me," Sapphire insisted. "This is not the time to be clingy. If you don't reach our friends in time, we're all finished. I promise you, the second we meet again, we will fuse. I need you to be strong and do this on your own before that."

 

"B-but, what're you two gonna do if I leave you behind…?"

 

"Ruby, I can see into the future, and Peridot is a genius." Sapphire reminded her spouse with a smile. "Do you have so little faith in us, that we can't take care of ourselves?"

 

Peridot nodded and smiled along with Sapphire, though she wasn't sure why. Ruby really did need the reassurance, though…

 

"Yeah, yeah, don't even worry." Her tone shifted to something more serious. "I swear on my life as a Crystal Gem, I'll protect Sapphire until you get back. And you have my full blessing to become Garnet again as well; we're only one floor away from 2F5L. You have my word. Now please do me that same courtesy, for our friends…?"

 

That actually moved Ruby. "There's the strong, reliable Peridot I was looking for."

 

She shook Peridot's hand to indicate an informal agreement between the two. "I'll make sure your friends stay pallid-free. Come as soon as you can; they'll be looking for their leader."

 

"And their leader will come to them in a blaze of glory," Peridot smugly followed up. "No seriously, I will. So good luck, Ruby."

 

Ruby nodded, and finally Peridot had one free hand as she watched her friend disappear into the mass of slow-moving gem bodies.

 

"Okay, I'll be straight with you," Peridot sighed. "I don't have a plan for this."

 

Sapphire latched herself onto Peridot's back. "Don't worry, you will. But there's something we seriously need to talk about."

 

"It can't  _wait?_ "

 

"It can't," Sapphire insisted. "In a few feet there should be a little alcove on our end. There's a table with some abstract structure on it; there's just enough size for us to fit under the table."

 

Seconds later, Peridot saw exactly that. "Huh, so there is."

 

They both slid underneath the table. It was a snug fit, but it also gave them cover so none of the passing gems would see them. "Okay, good start. How perfectly did we time getting under here, now?"

 

Sapphire remained still. "Take a peek outside right…. now."

 

Peridot whipped her head out from under the table, then frantically pulled herself back 2 seconds later. " _Oh my stars_. That… that's Blue Diamond… and… and she's  _pallid_ …." She felt herself smiling uncontrollably, like her body was trying to convince her mind that this couldn't possibly be real. "White Diamond infected one of her own and now she's headed towards my fr-"

 

Peridot was cut off when heavy, rumbling thuds of a giant marching nearby shook the area, even making the table reverberate. She was  _not_  looking out there again, but she didn't need to. She saw the legs of the giant who was mere inches away from the two hiding gems. From what little she could make out of the golden yellow color and the size of her leg… and then remembered just who passed by…

 

"Yellow Diamond, too? Only she's fine…"

 

"Only so far," Sapphire told her. "I have a feeling this night will not end well for her. But you see we're bound to have a massive battle on our hands, and right by our exit."

 

"I think I feel sick…"

 

Sapphire sighed. This was going to be a  _very_  long night; a night where chances of anyone coming out of this happy were slim to nil. "I'm afraid this isn't going to help, but you  _need_  to see this, Peridot… my leader."

 

Peridot's eyes bugged out when she felt Sapphire kiss her gemstone. " _H-_ _Hey?_ _!_  What's this all ab-"

 

She got her answer quick as she began to see something play out very clearly in her head, reflected within her eyes. Sapphire held both hands gently with her own. She was going to need to communicate with Peridot, because it took the clairvoyant gem forever to glean anything from this prophetic message.

 

There was hardly any color, and the picture quality was grainy, with some flickering. It soon focused into a more coherent picture. The setting was definitely the 2F5L terminal. Various pallid gems were getting poofed by her friends, though which friends they were kept shifting between frames. A brief flash showed a horrified Yellow Diamond standing back, as if she was helpless to stand against whatever attacked her… most likely White Diamond.

 

Then there was the hallway with the broken gate. Where she, Lapis, and Bismuth engineered a perfect escape route. Peridot now found herself imposed within Sapphire's vision. A translucent Sapphire appeared beside her.

 

_"I acquired this vision a while ago, but I could not make any sense of it until now. When I realized its true meaning, I knew I had to tell you right away. This vision… I strongly feel will be our future. The problem is… well, I think you can see for yourself."_

 

Peridot looked down at herself and gawked. "GAH! Why did I become Amethyst?! Did she shapeshift into me during this battle or something?!"

 

_"Give it time; this isn't the end yet."_

 

Peridot checked herself out again, only to find she was now Connie. "Yeah, okay. I saw some of my friends swap places in the background early on. I'm assuming this isn't a glitch."

 

 _"The enemy has been successfully repelled."_ Sapphire pointed over to where Blue and Yellow Diamond were lifeless on the ground. It seemed the projection of White Diamond was shorting out.

 

The coast was clear; Peridot smiled as she watched her friends waste no time heading for a familiar tunnel where they could secretly and securely take refuge in her ship.

 

_"We have nothing standing in our way… we can finally go home."_

 

Peridot was beaming with pride. She said it over and over, she was going to be a good leader; a responsible one, and she was going to rescue everyone and bring them home. She watched as her friends dashed down the hall, jumping down into the exit chute one by one, even though said friends kept shifting into other friends. It was nothing that bothered Peridot too much; it seemed like something an artist would do.

 

_"It's wonderful, isn't it? The odds were stacked so highly against us, but we are coming home. We will be going back to Earth, to live our happy lives…"_

 

"Wait. Something's getting back up," Peridot pointed out. There were still a few straggler friends her shifting avatar was trying to hurry along to the tunnel. "H-hurry up, you clods! You're just begging to get sniped at the last minute!"

 

The straggler friends did make their way down the chute eventually. Now all that remained was Peridot's shifting avatar, who started running. "Okay, so we're still making good time. It looks like White's trying to pull something, but there's no way she can reach whoever this is in ti-"

 

Peridot's shifting avatar fell. What from, it was unclear, but it was a nasty fall nonetheless. The head must have been hit, because now the vision was getting hazy.

 

"The tunnel is only a few feet away, you stupid idiot! Just crawl!"

 

The fact that Sapphire had stopped talking was very telling. This was what she wanted her leader to see. After some visible struggling, the last Crystal Gem looked up outside. The PeriLuck had risen, and moments later blasted off as scheduled. When the ship was no longer visible, everything faded to black as the avatar had either passed out or died by this point. Before Peridot could say anything, the sudden visage of what had to be White Diamond's face flickered before the vision was complete. Even Sapphire winced at the sudden White Diamond jump scare, but could only imagine how much worse it would be to suffer that in real life.

 

"B-back up the vision a bit," Peridot insisted. "I want to know who it is we last see before losing consciousness or dying."

 

 _"If you insist."_ But Sapphire knew already this was a waste of time. Peridot was doing what Sapphire herself had done thousands of times over.

 

The last frame of the avatar after it fell froze. The body was that of Bismuth's.

 

"N-no! No, absolutely not!" Peridot cried out. "Not Bismuth, I can't let that happen!"

 

_"Peridot… I understand your feelings. But I need you to look at this more deeply. You're still taking it for face value."_

 

"What are you talking about…?"

 

_"Allow me to run that same cut of footage. The beginning and endpoint on the time stamp are identical to what I showed first. So, watch again."_

 

And Peridot did. Everything played out exactly the same way. But when it got to the end this time, the final frame displayed Garnet's body. And that's when Peridot caught on.

 

"Sapphire… is it a different person every time you play this?"

 

_"Absolutely."_

 

"So… that body could just as easily be mine, couldn't it?"

 

The frame shifted the avatar again, revealing Peridot sprawled on the floor.  _"Just as easily? Yes. It has never showed me the same person twice. Now, what does that tell you?"_

 

"That… this could happen to any one of us. All of this you showed me! Every position an ally was in, it changed to someone else after a second. So, you're giving me a layout of how this ends, is that it? Just with the roles of these people not yet determined?"

_"Correct."_

 

"But what about the stuff before this?" Peridot rightfully inquired. "Is it always one person who stays behind way longer than they should? Do they always fall before making it to the exit?"

 

_"Some details start to distort in certain places, but I'll tell you for certain that every time, the last person who goes through the tunnel will fall. It's never clear to me how it happens… whether it was an honest accident or if the remaining ally was hit with an attack from behind. The fall must be a poignant detail, just like the fact that the last one who stays behind ultimately will not make it."_

 

"Please, tell me I can do something to alter the course. If you're so sure this is what's coming for us downstairs, then I have the power to change it! I can make this whole thing null and void!" Peridot looked so desperate, yet tried to sound hopeful. "If this goes on as you see it, then… it's impossible to take everyone home! And I won't accept that!"

 

 _"Peridot. You're a loving soul… I admire that so much. But I wouldn't be showing this to you if I thought it could be changed. I tried to will in an alteration myself, but this vision is a stubborn one."_ Sapphire genuinely sounded sad… borderline upset, even.  _"I decided to share this vision with you because as the leader of the Crystal Gems, it should be your responsibility to determine who is the one left behind."_

 

"Are you nuts?! Just because I'm the leader of a team doesn't mean I have the right to decide someone's fate like that!" Peridot was hurt terribly, at the prospect of having to carry all this information into battle.

 

_"The only solace I can offer is that I can only go off of faint hints of feelings on the ship, depending who is there and who… isn't. And the one left behind, whoever that ends up being… this does not mean they are deceased. It seems inevitable that the remaining will suffer head trauma, perhaps even a concussion, but that couldn't be a cause of death."_

 

She really wanted to instill some kind of hope in Peridot, because she very strongly believed Peridot would let herself be the remaining; the one that won't be going home to Earth. Sapphire didn't want to see that at all; then again, she couldn't think of anyone she would put in such a position. But it felt so wrong, enabling Peridot to sacrifice herself.

 

"So what? Maybe the remaining dies a few minutes later. Or maybe the  _hordes of_ _enemies_  right behind them will finish the idiot off!" Peridot growled. "What makes you think anyone who gets left behind here is going to stay alive long enough for anything else to matter?!"

 

_"Peridot. You know as well as I do, how irrational and illogical the Diamonds can be. I suspect the remaining will primarily be White Diamond's prisoner. Based on what little we know of her, I do fear for the remaining should they survive. But consider this, if you will. Assuming the remaining won't be Steven-"_

 

"It won't be Steven," Peridot said immediately. "I will  _never allow it to be Steven."_

 

 _"Duly noted. Back to my point, Steven is the one White Diamond seeks. If Steven is not the remaining, it can be assumed he will mount a rescue much in the same way you did."_ Sapphire saw Peridot realize the ramifications of her own potential self-sacrifice.  _"_ _White Diamond would have the remaining as a bargaining chip, and I believe you know how Steven will handle something like that."_

 

Peridot crumbled, grasping at her hair. "That would take us right back to where we started!"

 

 _"But this is purely hypothetical, unlike the vision I showed you. I'm so sorry, Peridot."_ Sapphire was struggling to remain calm and composed.  _"I know you're going to volunteer yourself…"_

 

"When did I ever say I would be sacrificing myself?" Peridot asked Sapphire with a frown. " _Of course_  I'm going to be the one who stays behind. It's my job to keep the Crystal Gems safe, so I  _have_  to be the last one to leave. But I have no intention of sacrificing myself, Sapphire. I'm going to do everything in my power to make it to the ship. Your vision has so far shown me no reason to "sacrifice" anything. The ship left as intended, and everyone else seemed to get in just fine. So I refuse to call it a sacrifice based on what you've given me. Honestly, self-sacrifice is so glorified these days. Like people think it's noble to intentionally abandon the people who love them in the name of giving yourself up for some greater good.  _Get out of here_  with that crap! If I end up never leaving here, it won't be for my lack of trying. I promise you that, Sapphire!"

 

A tear poured down Sapphire's face, but she was honestly smiling. _"That's the best thing I've heard in a long time, Peridot. I want to believe you'll succeed, even though fate does not favor you in the least. You do have a valid point; the vision doesn't depict anything that can be construed as a true sacrifice. But there are always going to be some blind spots in my visions; understand that. It's why I can't identify the cause of the remaining falling down in the first place."_

 

Peridot nodded. "I know that couldn't have been easy for you, Sapphire… thank you for telling me. So, this very well may be the last conversation I ever have with you. And just as we were getting along so well…"

 

Then something important came to mind. "Actually, Sapphire. Let's say for the sake of argument that I am the one left behind, and I'm either shattered or never rescued. I… I didn't think I'd be telling anyone about this before it happens, but… I may have prepared some messages for everybody meant to be sent automatically to everyone based on a coded variable. Basically, whether or not I'm present inside the ship by the time you all leave Homeworld's atmosphere. I was so sure I'd die at so many other points on this journey… the idea of it happening right at the very end of it all really pisses me off. S-so I prepared ahead of time, just in case of a worst-case scenario. Anyway, I just wanted to make sure everyone got their message. I have all the files saved on my tablet, and it's backed up. I made one for Garnet. I didn't know you or Ruby well enough to make one for you, sorry."

 

 _"Having you here to talk to right now more than makes up for it," Sapphire_  assured her. _"But I feel it's time we returned back to the physical plane. There's already a battle beginning in the 2F5L Terminal. Your friends need you, Peridot. Be sure to take in those moments… just in case."_

 

"I-I will, I promise," Peridot agreed with a shaky nod. "Wait, am I seriously still under the table?!"

* * *

 

 

"Heheh. You are, indeed. Come on; wake up now."

 

That wasn't Sapphire's voice. The real Peridot woke up with a jolt, to indeed find herself still underneath the table, though she was without company in that cramped space now. Instead, Garnet was crouched over from the outside to peek into the space. And when Peridot woke up and found her back and neck in a terrible state of pain, Garnet was more than happy to help her out and pick her up to let her body stretch out as it  _badly_  needed it.

 

"Sapphire apologizes; she should have chosen a better hiding place," Garnet apologized. "How are you holding up?"

 

"I-… ugh," Peridot grunted and wiped her eyes, surprised to see fresh tears smeared across her forearm. "How long have I been  _crying?_ I don't think I cried even once in that… whatever place Sapphire took me!"

 

"You're not the only one," Garnet offered some sympathy and assurance, even letting Peridot see behind her shades. All three eyes were red and puffy from crying. "A lot of it was from Ruby, but you managed to get Sapphire to tear up as well."

 

Then Peridot realized the secret was no longer between her and Sapphire and she looked apprehensive. "Garnet, I… what did you think of the vision?"

 

"I appreciate your efforts in finding the holes in Sapphire's interpretation, Peridot," she said. "But that may not be enough to change the course of our path… regardless, I'm very proud of you. Very sad as well, but… Rest assured I will be taking care of your… messages. I'm very concerned about what White Diamond could to do you, should she keep you alive. She'll certainly try to make you like she has so many other gems now… pallid."

 

"She can try," Peridot snorted. "Sounds too boring, though. She can have all the mindless eyes she wants on Homeworld. You'd think if she valued me as a prisoner or some kind of bait for Steven, she'd put some more effort in trying to break me. Pallification looks more and more like some crutch for insecure tyrants."

 

Garnet smiled. "You know there's a tough battle ahead of us, don't you?"

 

"Are you suggesting I'm just trying to act tough because there's a giant scary messy battle going on and it's  _definitely_  not terrifying me? Because I swear it isn't!"

 

"Come, now. Let's see where this final battle takes us."

 

Of course, Ruby had been able to reach the others in time before they were consumed by a pallid wave, but all that did was cause an all-out brawl just upstairs from their getaway tunnel. The Crystal Gems were pushed back big time when the pallid Blue Diamond entered the fray, as no one could outdo or at least match a Diamond's power. When Yellow Diamond arrived,  _everyone_  retreated to the downstairs while Ruby quietly snuck by to reunite with Sapphire.

 

When Garnet and Peridot stood at the metaphorical precipice of the battlefield up the staircase, it was already evident how brutal everything had gotten. Several gemstones, presumably having been poofed by their allies, were scattered across the ground. A disturbing detail to this, however, was that every single gemstone was monochromatic. So that told Peridot even poofing an infected gem wouldn't purge this disease.

 

"We should probably bubble these," Peridot suggested. "The last thing we need is a battle that never ends."

 

"They're still infected, you know," Garnet pointed out. "That… would not really make it any different from the corrupted gems we caught on Earth."

 

"Except the corrupted gems are just wild and rabid, no different from non-domesticated Earth organics. These gems had their entire minds and personalities purged by White Diamond, and we don't know for sure if that can ever be brought back," Peridot pointed out. "But if they're in stasis, I can't see White being able to use them as her accessories."

 

Garnet nodded. "I'll leave it to you to take care of that; I am more needed downstairs."

 

"Yeah, this is the most I'm gonna be good for in combat," Peridot muttered. "Oh, Garnet. One more thing."

 

Garnet paused and turned to her diminutive comrade.

 

Peridot held out her hand and produced her self-made bubble that contained Yellow Pearl. "I'd like you to tap this for me. I'm not sure where it'll end up if I do it, but Yellow Pearl's gemstone is a valuable commodity." She handed the bubble over to Garnet. "If you clods are really stupid enough to ever return to this planet again, I want you to have it. There won't be a single area you won't have clearance for as long as you have her as a key. If we leave her here, I probably  _will_  end up shattered when she gets out… or she'll just end up as yet another pallid drone." She couldn't help but let out a cheeky smile. "And, uh. I admit, I kinda like the idea having her as a trophy at home. Not everybody gets to poof their manager, and it just  _really_  feels good that I managed to steal an important asset of Yellow Diamond's."

 

Garnet gave Peridot an amused smile before she obliged the youth and tapped Yellow Pearl's bubble, sending it to the Burning Room on Earth. "Peridot, I know you will be able to contribute to this battle meaningfully, and I'm not referring to the end. Do what you do best; the team looks up to you for a reason."

 

With that, Garnet went downstairs to do her part in this massive battle, and Peridot went straight to work bubbling and sending off every pallid gemstone she could find.

 

* * *

 

 

**[ GOTTA KEEP MY HEAD UP, NEVER GET THAT LOW**

**CAUSE I'M LIVING THIS LIFE, NOW IT'S ALL I KNOW**

**LIKE OH**

**IT'S THE LIFE I CHOSE… ]**


	8. A Solid B+

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Crystal Gems fight for their lives and their freedom as the Diamond Authority catches up with the rebels just as they come within reach of the finish line. 
> 
> Will Sapphire's premonition come to pass, or can the Crystal Gems defy fate itself?

It was a madhouse in Terminal 2F5L. The only positive to this was that, outside of the remaining pallids, there was no sign of White Diamond anywhere. The Crystal Gems prioritized thinning out the pallid numbers, since the last thing anyone needed was an infected ally. When pallid Blue Diamond and Yellow Diamond attacked, everyone was forced to go on defense, which thankfully, Steven took care of masterfully. Being a Diamond himself meant he was the only one who stood a chance in matching their power, but so few of his maneuvers were offensive.

 

Bismuth was unquestionably the powerhouse, changing her extremities into the best weapon for dispatching certain enemies. She was the biggest part of the grunt clean-up duty.

 

What the Crystal Gems knew was that this was not a battle they needed to decisively win. Lapis and Bismuth pointed out the tunnel with the broken gate, so everyone knew where to escape and how. The goal here was to fend off the enemy enough to make for a clean getaway. No one had seen the PeriLuck at all, and its positioning insured that it wouldn't be spotted.

 

But they had to time this correctly: if the battle went on with members just running down the tunnel one at a time when one would assume they would stay behind and fight with their friends, the Diamonds would know something was amiss and possibly destroy their exit. Everyone needed to leave close to the same time, depending on how the battle fared for them.

 

Amethyst and Pearl also did an adequate job cleaning up the grunts. Connie, however, no longer had the sword she spent so much time honing her skills with, and this wasn't the kind of place one would just find a spare weapon lying around. She unfortunately became on par with Peridot in combat capability this time, but that didn't stop her from helping wherever necessary. She was agile enough to mislead pallids into an attack from another ally, or act as a distraction. She still kept a vigilant eye out for  _anything_  she could use as a weapon.

 

Lapis did some grunt work, but her focus was squarely on the pallid Blue Diamond. She hoped in vain that Blue Diamond having her body hijacked would dull down her natural abilities, but she still came off on the losing end every time. She cursed her very limited usage of water; most of what Lapis brought along had been used up. It was beyond aggravating to know there were two water coolers filled with water very close by, but not close enough for her to reliably access them. She would have to pull off some complex manipulation skill to guide the water to her. The easier option, that being to go down the chute and take the water directly from the ship, but that held the heavy risk of their ship being discovered.

 

She would figure something out. Somehow.

 

Garnet finally made her way into the thick of things and noticed that Yellow Diamond, while still retaining her color and agency, surveyed the battle from a distance rather than actively fight. Since the vision she had included White Diamond, Garnet figured she might be waiting for that particular back-up, or act once the pallids had been eliminated. That process accelerated quickly when Garnet contributed to it.

 

"Yellow Diamond, why are you doing this?!" Steven demanded to know once he noticed the Diamond's lack of participation. He continued to watch around from all angles to avoid a surprise attack, but he had his shield out now. It wasn't too hard to fend off some pallids, and Steven decided to use his newly-realized status as a Diamond (half-Diamond, but that was beside the point) to do his best to appeal to one of the biggest threats on the battlefield. "How can you let this happen after you let White Diamond do this to Blue right in front of you?!"

 

_"_ Mouthy as ever, aren't we, Pink?" Yellow Diamond sneered, very much not amused. "Blue was weak. All it took was for you to exploit her vulnerabilities and just like that, you turned her against her own family. You were always nothing but trouble, Pink, but dragging Blue down with you is  _disgusting_  and you should acknowledge how far you've fallen."

 

"If this is the kind of life Mom had as Pink Diamond, it's no wonder she ran off and started a rebellion!" Steven countered. "Blue  _told_  me, you know. She talked to me about how much "trouble" Pink caused for you three, and that's why you kept locking her in the tower! That's why you made her cry, and that's how you  _gave her a reason_ to leave! No matter how many times she tried to stand up for herself, none of you respected her! She felt like a prisoner on Homeworld! Didn't you ever think even once how you'd feel if that was  _you_ being treated this way?"

 

That irked Yellow terribly. She struggled to maintain her composure, but she was very clearly fuming at the way Steven told her off.

 

"You wouldn't hear her out when you gave Pink Earth as a colony, remember?" Steven added. "When Pink learned the truth of what you guys really do to the planets you colonize. Why didn't you ever tell her that from the start?! Giving her the  _Human_ _Zoo_ was your one attempt to make peace with her, but you couldn't even get that right!"

 

Steven effortlessly jabbed his spiked shield into an incoming pallid, poofing it, all the while he never broke sight from Yellow Diamond. "Pink treasured  _all_  life, no matter how less-than-perfect it was. And that's one thing other than the gem that I know I inherited from her! If you seriously thought just sparing a few humans and animals out of the billions that live on Earth was enough for Pink, I don't know why you ever thought you were perfect in the first place, Yellow! A lot of living beings out there, way "beneath" you, could've told you that it would never work. And if they were here right now, they'd all point at you and say, "Told you so!"…! So tell me,  _how_  are you perfect, again?!"

 

A fist slammed into the terminal wall, startling everyone in the area at first, before they resumed their duties. "Pink… I order you to silence yourself…  _immediately!_ "

 

Steven just stuck his tongue out at her. "Make me!"

 

Yellow swooped down to grab Steven and hold him up within the blink of an eye. She glared intently into his eyes. "Very well. I  _order_  you to stop, Pink. And stop mocking me with that facial gesture! It was not humorous 7000 years ago, and it's still just as disrespectful today!"

 

"Wow, Mom actually made those faces at you?" Steven asked, a little bemused but now even more proud of himself. "Well, she gained some respect points in my book just for that. All I'm doing is what you're telling me to, y'know. I'm giving you the "respect"  _you_ _deserve."_

 

Yellow struggled; she still had the self-restraint to stop herself from squishing the half-organic in her hands, but Steven was hitting all of her trigger points this time.

 

The day already had not been an easy one for her; she could only watch on when White Diamond beat down Blue savagely before she became little more than White's secondary vessel. Yellow was very conflicted on what to do; so much that she failed to acknowledge the escaping Crystal Gems whom she could have stopped herself. But once White gave Yellow that "Go ahead. Defy me. I  _dare_  you." look, she shrank back and lost her resolve to fight. It killed her to see Blue the way she was now, but Yellow knew well that she would share the same fate if she dared to question anything. She really didn't want to be part of this battle, but Yellow had no power to go against White's order.

 

"You…  _you_  are in for a world of trouble when White Diamond arrives," she growled at Steven. "And she  _will_  be here, in this very battlefield, very soon. Do you wish to share Blue's fate, Pink?!"

 

"Oh. My.  _Stars._  Will you shut your voice-hole?"

 

That sounded like Peridot. But Steven couldn't see Peridot on level with him, of course, and she wasn't foolishly running up to Yellow Diamond like she did before. Steven managed to spot her, but kept a straight face so as not to give her away. He opted to distract the Diamond instead.

 

"So, you really aren't family, are you?" Steven asked. "It sounds more like White's the head of everything, and everyone below her, even Diamonds, are just tools she uses to stay on top. How close am I?"

 

"You  _ignorant little pebble!_  How dare you speak such sacrilegious insanity!" While Blue's emotional state was the way to exploit her weakness well enough to make her listen to lower beings, Yellow's temper seemed to be a counterpart of that. "Unlike Blue, I believe I'll find it a  _great pleasure_ to watch White Diamond beat the will to live right out of you, so you may serve a greater purpose as her proxy! It will be poetic justice!"

 

"If being made pallid is  _such_  an honor, why hasn't White Diamond turned you into part of the hive mind yet, Yellow?!" Suddenly, Peridot appeared in front of Yellow Diamond, only a couple of levels lower than the point where she held Steven.

 

In a split second, Yellow Diamond realized why Peridot was positioned as she was. She couldn't comprehend how Peridot thought she could do damage of any kind. Then just as she wondered how Peridot could meet her at this height without being attached to her body, she noticed the steel beam underneath her feet. And the steel beam was attached to nothing.

 

It was unthinkable; an Era 2 Peridot actually possessed some kind of power. It didn't make sense. No others of Peridot had kind ever achieved such a feat. And why, out of the millions of them, did it have to be  _this_  Peridot who owned this strange power?

 

It was to Peridot's advantage that her statistical impossibility would scramble the so-called logical and rational-minded Yellow Diamond long enough to do what she came here for. She had one hand behind her back and at this moment drew out what she was hiding. It was a hammer; a very ornate and professional hammer. Steven watched with pure disbelief as he witnessed Peridot take advantage of that small opening her mere presence gave.

 

He watched her smash the hammer directly over the gem embedded in the middle of her bosom. Yellow Diamond's  _diamond_.

 

A brief shattering was heard, and Yellow Diamond howled out in agony. In just a few thrusts, Peridot's hammer was embedded within a newly-made recess in her weak point; her lifeline. Bits of diamond dust and pieces flew out and fell to the floor below. Although Peridot severely lacked the physical strength to make a dent like this on her own, the metal part of the hammer could be manipulated into hitting the target much, much harder; so much that it felt more like Bismuth jabbed a hammer in her rather than Peridot. Those weak thrusts that would have thwacked off the diamond under normal circumstances became concentrated, penetrative pressure point attacks. The hard part of this was yanking the hammer back out.

 

"That's for touching  _my_  center of gravity," Peridot finally said loud enough for Yellow Diamond to hear. "I guess the other hits are for talking down to him, and for the grief you put me through. Something like that. Oh, and start scouting for a new Yellow Pearl. I kinda made off with yours.  _That will be all,_ _Yellow Clod!_ "

 

Yellow's grip on Steven loosened, predictably, but Peridot was quick to surf in on her steel beam to catch the one who meant everything to her.

 

"P-Peridot, you really didn't just-"

 

"She's not shattered, Steven," Peridot sighed out. The little gem was prepared to explain this to Steven; it was not hard to predict he'd want to be sure about what she did. "Just cracked. And probably not enough to do any lasting damage, but it  _should_  stun her for the rest of the fight."

 

"But… but how did you know to…?"

 

"Have you ever noticed how Diamonds go on and on about how hard they are? Like, "ooh, we're the hardest substance in the universe so we can break everything, and nothing can break us!" and all that?" Peridot asked him.

 

"I think I might have heard it once or twice," Steven said in jest. Because yes, he was all too aware how the Diamonds praised their hardness.

 

"Yeah, well, they're also  _sooooo_  brittle; that's the part they'll never tell you about," Peridot said with a wink. "And it's something I picked up in your Earth literature about geology. All you really need is a strong material, like most types of metal, and a  _lot_  of force. So, good thing I can manipulate metal. And being in close range meant I didn't have to even exert myself that much! Aren't I just  _brilliant?!_ "

 

Steven laughed. "You sure are, Peridot. You scared me a second there, but you're amazing. That was so risky, getting that close to her."

 

"You are, without a doubt, worth any risk," Peridot said with a calm, yet confident air. "As much as I'd love to just spend the night air-surfing with you, I think we've got friends who need some help."

 

That brought down Steven's mood, but he understood. "Yeah. Some of them are on their own right now; they'll need defense."

 

"And I see one in dire need for a means of offense," Peridot added. "We'll meet up in the PeriLuck soon enough. Lapis and Bismuth told you all how our escape route works, right?"

 

"Yep! Can't wait to do the tube ride. Oh, and they told me what the PeriLuck name stands for. I like it." Now the pair had descended very close to the floor, where Peridot would drop off her partner.

 

"See you then, Steven." Just as Peridot was about to take off, though…

 

"Hey, Peridot?"

 

"Yes…?"

 

Peridot turned around just in time to get pulled into an embrace. It was an odd, yet familiar kind of embrace. Steven set one leg on the floating beam, so he could hold the gem even closer to him. His face came up by the side of Peridot's, but nothing happened.

 

"Erm… any last words, Steven?"

 

"I love you, Peridot." Steven nearly squished her with his hug, and Peridot could instantly see the two of them stuck together in that drill, several miles underground at the Earth's core, both preparing to lose their lives to the Cluster and spend their last moments together. It was only now that Peridot realized this was a callback; she unintentionally recited that paraphrased line before Steven professed his love. And Peridot grew all the warmer inside, feeling a great surge of happiness, power… all of the positives in her life enhanced greatly. It was upgraded then to a brief, but passionate kiss.

 

" _W-wow,"_ _Peridot_  replied breathlessly, feeling the comforting warmth wash over her. "Thanks…"

 

And with that, Steven took off. Peridot watched him, enraptured before she suddenly thought to yell out as he ran: " **HEY!**   _HEY, STEVEN!_  I RECIPROCATE YOUR SENTIMENTS!"

 

He looked back as he ran and smiled at Peridot. And that's all she needed. Peridot had her strength and energy fully renewed, and she could focus on neutralizing as many enemies as possible before trying with all her might to change the intended course of history.

 

Now, Peridot soon found herself with a typical leadership dilemma: who to help next, and how.

 

Amethyst and Pearl had been doing very well, especially since they fused into Opal and were quickly diminishing the population of pallids in this terminal with their combined power. They were doing just fine.

 

Peridot then looked to the other scenarios, and suddenly the early visuals of that grainy, smudged-up premonition came to mind. This was roughly the layout for what Sapphire predicted.

 

Lapis was still hellbent on combating the pallid Blue Diamond, though she wasn't making much progress and she was losing water fast. Bismuth had arrived to assist, but again… this was a Diamond. And possibly a worse case, since it was really White Diamond in there. But Peridot knew she wouldn't get a lucky shot like she did on Yellow twice in the same night. A quick glance at Yellow Diamond showed the once mighty Diamond on her knees, her head bowed down into the floor. Her form flickered, indicating the crack Peridot's hammer made was enough to fully pacify her.

 

It almost felt like she was concluding a part of her life, just in time before it all came to an end.

 

Peridot turned around to see the action going on behind her: Garnet was cleaning house with the pallids, as was expected. Connie, on the other hand… Peridot felt an odd kinship towards all of a sudden.

 

She was the only full human of the Crystal Gems, and still very small, as she hadn't yet hit her growth spurt. Next to Garnet, she seemed puny.

 

Connie's specialty was the art of the sword, taught by Pearl, and wielded the legendary Rose Quartz sword… until Blue Diamond shattered it during their invasion on Earth. Now she was left with nothing to attack with. Though Connie possessed great athletic skill for her age, and was very agile, she could only help by putting herself at risk. That was something Garnet did not approve of, and tried to discourage, but her hands were too full to actually enforce that sentiment. Connie didn't care; she couldn't bear to just stand by and watch as her friends fought for their lives.

 

Peridot was basically looking at herself trying to help Garnet. The similarities were uncanny. It never seemed apparent when Connie was armed, but now that she only had what she was born with to make use of, it was blindingly obvious. Peridot couldn't help herself; she really liked Connie, though she had no idea if she was stealing Steven away from her or not. Then again, if future events went as planned… Connie could be there in her place, and that's what Peridot would want. She never liked to assume these things, like two people spending a lot of time together  _must_  be love. Peridot just took it for what it was.

 

She looked at the hammer in her hand, then heard a cry as Connie accidentally mistimed her movements and fell down flat on her face. Not a good time to notice this, but it was yet another way Peridot saw herself in Connie. Garnet was too tied up to aid the girl, and with the glint of her hammer catching Peridot's eye, she knew what must be done.

 

Peridot used her steel beam to rush over to the scene as quick as she could, and just before a pallid got to Connie, it was violently shoved away and consequently poofed as Peridot rammed into it. She  _did_  forget to take physics into account for his decision, as she hadn't mastered her balancing nor her powers well enough to keep herself from being flung off the beam, which fell to the floor seconds later.

 

"Peridot! Are you okay?!"

 

Luckily, Peridot wasn't thrown  _too_  far away. She did not enjoy that landing, though. She rubbed the back of her head, then saw Connie approaching her. "H-hah, just fine. Just forgot my feet weren't strapped into the beam, whoops…"

 

"You saved me," Connie said, so very thankfully. She extended a hand to help Peridot up, which she accepted. "Thank you so much. Awesome timing."

 

Peridot nodded before presenting her hammer. "When you're unarmed, I'm just seeing me out there and I won't stand for it. So, here. It's no Rose Quartz sword, but if you attack using the back end, you can maybe use it like a reverse glaive…?"

 

She was uncertain on that last part since swords were not Peridot's area of expertise and not a subject she learned much about independently. She had TV to thank for even knowing there were different kinds of antiquated weaponry.

 

"Are you sure?" Connie asked. "What about you, I mean… where did you even get this?" This did not look like an Earth hammer at all.

 

"I was bubbling all the poofed pallids upstairs before I arrived here," Peridot smugly explained. "You wouldn't  _believe_  the kinds of junk the gems had in their possession before getting… well, possessed."

 

"So we've got a stash of junk if we need it; good to know," Connie acknowledged. "I'll do you proud with this, Peridot. I'm just glad I can actually contribute."

 

It felt weird having Connie look up to her like this, and talk to her as if they weren't equals. Peridot kept forgetting she was the Crystal Gems' leader now; of course her team probably wracked their brains trying to figure out how to be subservient to Peridot, of all possible choices to become leaders.

 

"It's a nice feeling, isn't it?" Peridot could totally relate, and at this point Connie realized why it seemed Peridot understood her so perfectly. "Knock some heads around and give Garnet a little breathing room. Once we've got every area of this terminal under control, we're getting out of here. So don't go  _too_  crazy, okay?"

 

Connie saluted to her. "I'll bash my enemies' heads in responsibly!" She then ran off to do just that, and it was a joy seeing Connie finally able to take out these threats to their mission and their lives.

 

Garnet was proud of both of them, but quickly felt a bolt of a very clear and swiftly forthcoming vision that wiped the smile off her face. "PERIDOT! Hurry over and help the others!" She gestured over to the Blue Diamond fight, where Opal had joined after clearing out her end of the pallids. Steven was also there, deflecting Blue Diamond's blasts as best he could. There seemed to be at least a decent chance of the Crystal Gems coming out on top here, if Peridot could take out Yellow Diamond by herself. Then again, Blue Diamond was pallid now, and no longer herself. She was the ultimate vessel of White Diamond. And based on what Peridot could recall of Sapphire's vision, it wasn't until a "proper" vision of White Diamond appeared on the battlefield that Blue was thoroughly taken out, and it looked like Yellow was next. She was struggling to stand on her feet again, but her flickering form prevented Yellow from being able to anything except try to survive.

 

But if Garnet was that adamant about her joining the fight, Peridot would oblige. She at least owed Garnet her full respect and compliance for usurping her from her position. She sped over towards the battle, noticing there were far more poofed gemstones about than active pallid gems. There were way too many to bubble right now, but Peridot assumed they wouldn't be in this terminal much longer to have to worry about them reforming.

 

"I swear, I won't rest until I see you in pieces," Lapis growled, still high in the air and had gotten to the point where she was so desperate for water, she started swiping molecules from the air to draw the water out. The problem was, this took a long time and didn't yield much for the terraformer to work with. But Lapis was resolute, and had been going every possible route of how to do more with less water. "You're not getting away with stealing all of these gems' bodies!"

 

Pallid Blue smiled at Lapis. "You have been coming at me from the very beginning, Lapis Lazuli." She could easily hold a conversation while fending off at least four other combatants. "Does it really upset you this much, knowing I'm parading around in Blue Diamond's form? She is no more, you know. I consumed her, dear. I consumed  _all_  of these gems… a fate worse than shattering, wouldn't you agree?" She chuckled, watching Lapis shake with rage.

 

"You think I don't know what purgatory is like?" Lapis asked; her tone deadly ferocious. "I've lived it. I've  _survived_  it. Then I've been tossed around  _both_  sides of this war. And I survived that, too!"

 

Lower down, as Peridot arrived on the scene, the problem was very apparent.

 

"I don't get it; why can't we damage her from down here? It's like she'd got an invincible shield for her feet and legs!" Steven complained.

 

"It's not much better on higher levels," Opal told him. "Every time I get to a certain height, she keeps deflecting my attacks and smacks me away! All while she's taunting Lapis!"

 

"Who really should be comin' down here so she can have somebody up there doin' the damage," Bismuth grumbled.

 

"Hey, remember this isn't exactly Blue Diamond we're dealing with here," Peridot announced as she floated close to her teammates. "This is White Diamond, just in Blue's body. As you can plainly tell, her powers and abilities can transfer to her proxies, so I think we need to regroup and think of another spot to focus on."

 

"Peridot!" Steven called out like he hadn't seen her in years. "Great, you can take one of us up there to help Lapis out."

 

"And do what, win a debate?" Peridot snapped back, then restrained herself. "S-sorry, that was mean. Since I got here, Lapis has been in that same spot, trying attack after attack and Blue-White-whatever, she's just flicking them away like they're nothing. And this is  _Lapis_  we're talking about. If she can fend off Opal too, we're going to need a more coordinated approach."

 

"I agree," Opal said. "I'm thinking another angle to attack from, such as behind. She shouldn't be able to see me; we've neutralized almost all of the pallids by now."

 

"Good plan," Peridot agreed. "Large opponents are optimally taken down by attacking the knee or ankle, but if we can't even penetrate that part, we need to get more creative and think of other possible weak points. Do any of you have suggestions?"

 

"Hm, back of the head would be one that makes sense, but good luck to anyone making it that far up her body," Bismuth suggested.

 

"The small of her back would be my guess," Opal supplied. "But how can we get through that robe to hit the spot precisely?"

 

"Umm… her butt?"

 

Steven was surrounded by three very unamused gems all of a sudden. "S-sorry, sorry! I swear I'm taking this seriously, but I can't think of a spot in the back that would be a weak spot, really."

 

"Just make sure we're well defended, Steven," Opal advised. "You're the only one who can actually deflect her attacks." She turned to her leader. "Did you have a spot in mind, Peridot?"

 

"The nape of her neck," Peridot answered. "Which we will have problems pinpointing thanks to her hair. All of these suggestions are hampered with interference factors that won't be easy to get around. So, we all either vote on one spot, or we go to our own suggested spots at the same time and hit them simultaneously. It is possible she has more than one."

 

"We can't try both?" Bismuth asked.

 

"We could in theory; we'll just lose our element of surprise if we attempt this a second time. So, with that in mind, I'm thinking we go with hitting all the suggested spots. We'll find out quickly that way where to direct our attacks on our next attempt," Peridot deduced. "So long as Lapis keeps talking to her, I think she just knows we're here and doesn't care. So, if she doesn't see us, she'll probably think we left."

 

"So, we've got some climbing to do," Opal understood. "I'm on it. I'll give you a signal when I find what I'm looking for."

 

"Bismuth, I think you'd appreciate a ride up," Peridot offered. "Your spot is close to mine, anyway."

 

"I wish I could help more," Steven grumbled.

 

"You're helping me already, Steven," Peridot assured him. "Just by being here, you're doing a lot more for me than you realize."

 

Steven smiled, but he didn't get it. "I'll bubble you guys if it gets too dangerous up there, okay? This is a bad time to get poofed…"

 

Meanwhile,  _much_ higher up, Lapis was preparing the best she had with what she had left. Absolutely nothing had worked on this monster, and it had long since exhausted Lapis. Yet, she continued to stay airborne at the same level she had been when she first approached this mockery of Blue Diamond.

 

"Unlike me, I bet you've never even  _known_  pain," Lapis declared. "Nor felt it. I can't believe the progenitor of gemkind is you! I refuse to believe it!" Her pouch was empty now, and she had gotten as much liquid from the air that she reasonably could. Water spiraled around her arm, and the streams became thicker on the level of her hand, which was now submerged in her creation. It resembled a wrist-mounted weapon, but the weapon was a steadily growing vortex of water. Lapis kept her left arm lowered, but she was charging something within her hand.

 

"As much as I've enjoyed shattering your perception of everything and making you question all that you know, I believe it's time we stopped playing, Lapis Lazuli," pallid Blue said, sounding relaxed. "I'm quite certain I've told you already I can destabilize you with one touch of my finger, no matter how powerful your attacks are."

 

"And I think you're bluffing, because you should have done that to me a while ago if you meant it!" Lapis countered. "Maybe a little bit of the real Blue Diamond is still in there after all, and you just don't want to admit it!"

 

Pallid Blue's facial features firmed into a bored, unimpressed stare. "Lapis Lazuli, that will be all."

 

Her right arm rose up, her hand rose in a pointing position already. Lapis unleashed her attack with all her fury and it was her most chaotic and torrential maneuver yet. Had Lapis known what kind of attack she was in for, she probably would have been level-headed enough to tone down her rage and maintain her distance. But in her unbridled wrath, Lapis forgot the worst possible kind of attack a Diamond could inflict on her.

 

Electricity.

 

She was connected to her own attack, and she was already too close to get out of the way. One touch of the water with a single jolt of lightning was enough to completely tear apart the gem's attack while Lapis was trapped in sheer torturous electrocution. Her nearby teammates looked on in shock, having to cover their mouths to mute their screams so as not to give away their position. But their tears flowed freely.

 

In a puff of smoke, Lapis Lazuli was reduced her base gemstone form and plummeted a great distance before Steven, who was still on the floor in the vicinity, rushed over in a panic and just in time bubbled the gemstone while catching it before it hit the floor. Steven was in tears as well. Things were going relatively okay; he didn't think anyone else was in danger of being poofed. Now one had fallen.

 

"How could you?!"

 

Pallid Blue's eyes lit up as she turned her attention to Steven, with legitimate joy and madness. "Oh, Starlight. Did I take out one of your little friends? I did warn you about associating with the lower gems; so many of them are vile and dangerous, just like that rabid Lapis Lazuli. Please understand that I did you a favor. Now, come along."

 

"NO!" Steven was adamant. He held the bubbled Lapis close to his chest and promptly formed a bubble around himself, coated in spikes. "Don't forget, I can send your attacks right back at you. And if you touch me, you're gonna regret it."

 

Bismuth was in position, emboldened by the loss of Lapis with her hand morphing into a hammer. A short distance below, Peridot was on Blue's shoulder, right next to her neck and under her hair. She was armed with a nondescript piece of scrap she came across on the way to this particular fight, which she morphed one side to have a very sharp point. She used it to cut some bits of hair, because it was very much in her way, but now she had found her target and was ready to strike. Opal used her arrows to discreetly cut her way through Blue's robe, and with a gem light to guide her, she found her spot as well. She could clearly hear everything despite being so layered underneath.

 

Instinctively, all three reared up to strike their spots as they felt the pallid Blue lurch down, presumably to get closer to Steven. That was unacceptable. During her descent, she let out a painfully high-pitched scream as Opal, Peridot, and Bismuth jammed their weapons against the presumed weak spots.

 

She shot up and jerked her back up in a very swift motion that easily threw Bismuth off her head, sending her careening for a very long and dangerous drop. Peridot was also knocked off her post, but she and the steel beam she rode in with got caught up in Blue's tangled hair. Opal was much further down and could maneuver her fall since she had plenty of fabric to grab, but when she saw Bismuth about to crash and poof, she rushed out as fast as her legs could carry her. Thankfully she was a fusion that emphasized agility and speed, and within the last few seconds, she snatched a terrified Bismuth, who was sure that would have been the point where she poofed.

 

The pallid Blue spun around and saw the gem and the fusion on the floor; obviously the culprits to the multiple sharp stings across her body and head.  **"YOU."**

 

The face on pallid Blue was an expression no one ever would have imagined she would ever make. A glare full of crazed, murderous intent, but a coldness to it that suggested she was not going to let the perpetrators leave with their lives tonight because of this. Then again, it wasn't  _really_  Blue, but it was still Blue's face in the end.

 

Bismuth calmed down from her near-hyperventilating after coming so close to hitting the ground during that giant fall. She looked to Opal, who still held her. "We… didn't think to plan about how to escape when she finds out we did that, did we?"

 

"Unfortunately not," Opal said, worry very clear in her eyes. "Bismuth… hold on tight."

 

Pallid Blue assaulted them with waves of crackling electricity. Just one small charge was enough to poof Lapis; a barrage of this would shatter gems easily on contact. Opal kept that in mind as she carried Bismuth and dodged the bolts like her life depended on it. They made it out unscathed, though a ball of white energy soon crashed on top of them both, as pallid Blue was in no mood to chase around some rodents.

 

With no time to react to the surprise follow-up attack, Opal held tightly on to Bismuth as both were blasted by the impact and smashed hard against the windows before falling to the ground. Steven rushed over, pushing the ball he was in along to tend to his friends. Luckily, no one else had been poofed. Unfortunately, having taken the brunt of the damage meant Opal's fusion could not hold, and she vanished leaving a very out-of-it Pearl and Amethyst lying in a heap next to Bismuth.

 

During all this, Peridot was still a prisoner in Blue's hair. After hearing how soul-shatteringly angry she was about getting stabbed and hit the way she'd been, Peridot was not at all inclined to let the Diamond know where she was. All the same, she wasn't keen on having to remain trapped in hair, of all things. She tried to force her way out, but for someone like Peridot, that would never be a solution for anything. She tried to reach her other limbs, as all four were inconveniently spread out. The steel beam was tangled up as well, but too far away from Peridot to make any use of. Even if she could use her powers to bring the beam over, it was too blunt to cut hair and pulling too hard would give away her position.

 

Nearing despair, she came up with an idea. The beam wouldn't be useful for freeing her, but the sharp scrap piece still lodged in the nape of pallid Blue's neck would be perfect. She wouldn't even need to hold it with her hands to free herself. Although there was a risk in that the Diamond would definitely feel the stab in her neck as the scrap was pulled out, and she'd end up in her unforgiving hands very quickly.

 

"Are you guys gonna be okay?!"

 

Peridot faintly heard that; it was Steven's voice.

 

"I think we'll live to fight another day, Steven…" That was clearly Pearl.

 

"Wait a minute, where did P-Dot go?" Definitely Amethyst. "I didn't see her anywhere when we caught Bismuth, Pearl!"

 

Now that was a problem. They were unintentionally putting her in danger by acknowledging her absence.

 

"Neither did I," Pearl admitted. "And usually it's near-impossible to overlook someone like her. Is it possible she never-" she clammed up at that minute. And Peridot was very thankful for that. Opal defusing was a blessing in disguise; pallid Blue knew she had been stabbed in 3 separate parts of her body, and now that Opal was no more, the Diamond found 3 culprits not yet knowing there was a fourth.

 

Steven wasn't as quick to catch on. "Wh-what do you mean you didn't see her?! She was with-"

 

The sudden cutting off of Steven's voice meant he did eventually catch on, or more likely, someone covered his mouth for him.

 

She saw no other way out of this; Peridot's hands had some range of how much they could move around, so she was able to see the scrap part very slowly emerge from Blue's neck; it was lodged in there tightly.

 

Peridot did her best to take a slower approach in willing the scrap out of the Diamond's nape, but it was easier said than done. She was also certain there wasn't much time left to be thorough about a methodical approach.

 

" _Pink!_  Remove yourself from these reprehensible minerals at once!" Pallid Blue screamed out. "I've toyed with the lot of you enough! Now accept your fate!"

 

That was a signal for Peridot to hurry along, and her extraction process sped up significantly. It was even making the wound worse as the shard had to morph around and push away any form of matter to return to its master's hands. Pallid Blue jerked her head back and cried out again, but with Peridot securely tied in the hair, her position only minimally changed.

 

She knew a hand would come her way very soon, so Peridot finished the extraction of the scrap, which left a bigger incision and cracking around the sides. There was no time to focus on that, though. The scrap floated over to cut Peridot's right hand free, then in swift fashion her legs became untangled as well.

 

Peridot snagged the scrap and freed her left arm manually. Rustling in the hair behind Peridot presented a warning, so Peridot hopped down and sliced the hair binding her steel beam as she started her descent. This was a pretty dangerous situation, as Peridot had rush her exit so much that she didn't have time to consider how she would reach the floor again.

 

Literally a second later, a hand pushed through to grasp the wound on the neck while Peridot, in a panic, tried to pull her beam over with her powers. The best she got was lining it up vertically below her, which ended with her falling flat on her torso against the beam… that was not a comfortable landing. Peridot just clung to her beam for the duration, but looked up behind her to see the various locks of hair she cut out fall alongside her, and pallid Blue looking like she had just been stabbed. It looked like that was a weak point after all.

 

"THAT'S FOR LAPIS, CLOD DIAMOND!"

 

The Crystal Gems below were beyond relieved to see her safe and sound and all have her a hug once she floated to their level.

 

"I think you got her, Peridot! That's the first time we've really seen her suffer like this," Pearl said excitedly. It seemed odd to hear Pearl giving praise like this, but Peridot didn't complain.

 

"Yeah, we've got her on the ropes now!" Amethyst cheered. "We're getting out of here  _and_  we got to whoop the Diamonds' butts! Ahh, so this is what accomplishment feels like, huh."

 

"You're getting ahead of yourself," Peridot criticized. "Look, she's been hit in a critical spot, but she hasn't even hit the floor yet. Even Yellow's gotten that far down."

 

She gestured to the still-kneeling Yellow Diamond, who screamed for "Blue", but even her voice sounded distorted at this point. She had next to no strength.

 

"What we need to do from here is regroup with Garnet and Connie and get out of here, because White Diamond herself is on her way as we speak," Peridot said. "It looks like the pallids are all taken care of, so we have an opening! Let's move!"

 

The others nodded while Steven deactivated his shield. Garnet and Connie were seen in the distance, and it appeared from the staircase that an ominous white light shined down, gradually growing brighter. It appeared that Garnet gave Connie the same instructions as Peridot.

 

The shining light was like a ticking time bomb. Peridot knew the climax of what Sapphire had shown her was on the horizon. The two groups merged, and everyone made a beeline to the broken gate.

 

"It's almost time, right?" Peridot quietly asked Garnet as they dashed. Garnet simply nodded to her.

 

"But Lapis being poofed didn't happen that time; I mean, there was no proof it did," Peridot informed the fusion. "Doesn't that mean there's still some room to optimize the result?"

 

"Maybe," was Garnet's curt reply. "Or it could have been another blind spot. Peridot, make sure to play it smart for the upcoming phase; White Diamond could be just as inattentive as her proxy."

 

Peridot thought about it, then winked at Garnet. "Gotcha."

 

Just as Pallid Blue started to stabilize herself, a giant, fierce white beam of light shot across the terminal. The Crystal Gems continued to run as they noticed it, but stopped when they saw what happened behind them.

 

The beam shot clean through pallid Blue, impaling her and irreparably destabilizing her in the process. She collapsed to the floor with a lifeless thud; the impact almost earthquake-like as the Crystal Gems struggled to maintain their footing. It was a good thing they decided to stop running at that moment.

 

**_"BLUE!"_** That was Yellow Diamond, reaching out helplessly as the shell of her former partner struggled in her final moments. Surprisingly, Yellow willed herself to stand at last and stagger over to her fellow Diamond. Just as she made it to pallid Blue, everything came to a halt.

 

Bright, blinding white lights suddenly lit up the deactivated screens across the terminal; all bearing an extreme close-up of White Diamond's face. At the staircase, it was nearly impossible to see – it was an extreme version of looking at the sun for too long. The screens emitted energy towards the staircase while the thuds of giant steps were heard by the others.

 

The Crystal Gems were not in a good position to hide, but there wasn't really any place  _to_  hide here. They all remained silent and still as the intense light toned down to the point where everyone could see who just descended the staircase: White Diamond. Her form was massive, unlike anything or anyone the Crystal Gems had ever seen, save for Steven.

 

Yellow turned her head, and in a very rare instance, looked absolutely terrified. "Wh-White Diamond… you… you left the ship?"

 

"Somewhat, but not entirely," White replied. Luckily for the team, White Diamond's focus seemed to be squarely on Yellow and no one else. "When you meld so many pallids together, it makes for a nice makeshift form, so I no longer have to disgrace myself by adorning anything worn by that weakling, Blue."

 

"You… you'll save her, won't you?" Yellow asked, sounding so pitiful as she begged. Peridot didn't know how to even comment on this. "Blue, she's… so badly hurt…"

 

"And already mine," White corrected. "This vessel you're protecting is meaningless. The most of Blue anyone's seen out of this proxy is the pain she felt, as I feel her agony within me as we speak. Our opponents are quite the vicious little brutes."

 

On that note, she looked towards the Crystal Gems, making sure they knew she knew they were there. "Starlight, please be patient. I have some unfinished business to conclude. You and I will chat very soon."

 

No one dared to say a word, but no one had any inclination to "be patient" either. Their gate wasn't far away. But now that White was here, the group understood they needed to go all at once when the time was right.

 

"What I am horrified to see is that your diamond has been cracked, Yellow," White Diamond said sternly. "You're quite lucky it was just a weakling who did this to you, or we might not even be having this conversation."

 

"S-so why won't you help me fix it? I have been  _loyal_  to you, White!" Yellow cried out in despair. "I wanted so badly to stop you from doing what you did to Blue, but I didn't!"

 

"Yes, but I suspect that was more out of fear than your earnest respect," White countered. "Am I wrong?"

 

Yellow was beside herself; she knew well it was fear that held her back. "What you did was unprecedented! Abnormal! I had no idea what to make of you!"

 

"And that only happened because Blue committed unprecedented acts of treason," White said, as if to justify the many horrible things she did to Blue Diamond. "She should be honored to be among my pallid elites, but now look at her. Absolute trash; totaled. Nothing will save her now, besides assimilation."

 

"Y-you're out of your mind! The Diamond Authority will shatter if you rid Blue from existence!" Yellow tried so hard to justify saving Blue, though she knew there was no Blue to save.

 

"And  _you_  are out of line," White warned Yellow with a hiss. "You are no better. A cracked diamond; you can barely stand, and you've been nothing but dead weight this time around. I thought it to be a waste of time to even pallify you, Yellow. But your incompetence compels me to grant you mercy as I did for Blue."

 

_"NO!"_  Yellow fell to her knees, grasping her head.  _"I beg of you!"_

 

Peridot could tell the scene she witnessed in the vision was soon to happen; that meant it was time to finally retreat.

 

"It's time for the Crystal Gems to make our move and take this chance," she whispered to everyone. "Be as quiet as you can; we're not gonna get another opportunity like this. Whoever takes the lead needs to carry Lapis too; I wanna make sure she doesn't get dropped and abandoned here."

 

It was silently decided that Connie would take Lapis; even being granted the hammer and managing to take out a good number of pallids wasn't enough to make her feel like she pulled her weight for this mission.

 

"I'll bring up the rear," Peridot volunteered; it felt so unnecessary given what was soon to happen, but she had to make sure no one else tried to stay behind longer than her. "There are security doors in that tunnel spaced out all the way up to our escape point; I know I can use my power to bring them down without the access codes. Just in case we're actually caught."

 

Everyone nodded; the scene displayed before them and White Diamond's appearance in general shook up everyone so much, they didn't want to argue or suggest other tactics. The first out that was made available to them, they would happily jump on. "Want me to stay close by?" Garnet privately offered.

 

"Please," Peridot agreed. After running her hand lovingly over her tablet that Steven gave her, she unstrapped it from her arm and offered it to Garnet. "Take care of it for me, won't you?"

 

Garnet accepted the offering and gave a thumbs-up. "It's time."

 

One last glance aside offered a terrifying scene.

 

"If you truly believe you are still of any worth to me as you are now, Yellow, prove it. See if you can stand up for me once more," White said, issuing a challenge… or an ultimatum.

 

Yellow silently accepted as she grunted, struggling with all of her might to stand. The horror of Blue's tragedy jumpstarted her body just for a moment, but she was worn down again. Her upper body felt so heavy, and her legs couldn't stop shaking. But with the threat of her own sentience being on the line, Yellow Diamond eventually went all out with what little energy she had left, and successfully made it back onto her feet. The legs were wonky and were far apart enough to make her body want to sink again, but  _she did it._

 

She looked to White Diamond, shaking with fear but prideful of her success. "Hah-!  _Ahahaha!_ I did it! You thought I couldn't… I proved you wrong!"

 

White Diamond was not impressed as she held her hand up towards the faltering Yellow.

 

"Since when have I ever told you to stand like that, Yellow? That posture is  _terrible. Inexcusable_ _._ You are a Diamond, are you not? What would other gems think of their Diamond if they saw you now?"

 

"B-but I stood up; I did as you asked!"

 

"That is  _not_  standing," White Diamond declared. "That is the stance of a lowlife who has no place on Homeworld; only within me will you be of use."

 

"BUT I STOOD!"

 

Those were Yellow Diamond's last words. No one wanted to see what followed a brutal laser blast and some unearthly sound no one could identify. The Crystal Gems made a mad dash for the gate, and praise be to the heavens – they finally made it.

 

"Hurry along, everyone!" Peridot commanded. "Make a run for the chute and don't look back!"

 

With Connie in the lead holding the Lapis bubble, everyone rushed out of the gate in a single file behind her.

 

"This—this is too much," Steven despaired, agonizing over the mess with the Diamonds. "They're taking out their own, and that isn't—"

 

" **STEVEN!**  Move! Now!" Peridot hissed at Steven, which shook him out of his stupor.

 

Steven nodded to Peridot and started to run. He remembered something Peridot had told him recently:  _"Always keep moving."_  … he needed to start making good on that.

 

Ideally, Peridot wanted Steven further up the line to minimize his chances of seeing her fail in her own mission. With Blue and Yellow dispatched, and no pallid gems remained beyond their tainted gemstones, Peridot could only conclude that her possible fall would be due to an attack from White Diamond, or an unavoidable accident.

 

But the hall to the chute was clear, and Peridot knew she could buy herself some time with the security doors if White was chasing her. There was really nothing Peridot saw that she could damage her head during a fall with; whatever she collided with in the vision was unclear.

 

Connie made it to the chute. It opened, and she held on tight to Lapis as she jumped down cannonball-style. 2 out of 8 Crystal Gems made it to safety. Peridot and Garnet had no idea what White Diamond was doing, but based on the unidentifiable cacophony blaring on in the background, it couldn't be anything good. Most likely, she was in the process of devouring her fellow Diamonds.

 

Pearl was next. She looked apprehensive of the escape route, but what other choice did she have? She kneeled, splayed her arms on both sides, and slid into the chute. That made 3.

 

Bismuth wasn't far behind, and if she hadn't worked on this chute with Lapis and Peridot herself, she would have serious doubts about fitting into the escape route. But they did a test just before embarking on the journey this morning.

 

Seeing it was well into nighttime, Bismuth could hardly believe this nearly took an entire day. And if they counted the ship ride to Homeworld, it probably was a full 24 hours since. Since she had been through the chute, she knew what to expect on the other side. Bismuth held her hands over her gemstone, not wanting to risk chipping or cracking it on the way into the PeriLuck. She jumped in, and looked so relieved to have made it. That was half of the team safe and sound, now.

 

Another odd sound was going on, and a blinding light filled the terminal. Peridot stopped for a short moment (knowing full well running and not looking where she was going would cause her to trip; it always did) and held out her hands to the front door of the gate. It was easy to shut, but loud. But now blinding light wouldn't fill up the tunnel… at least for now.

 

She had a feeling it was time to start adding layers of security while she still could; White wasn't on the pursuit yet; most likely this was a side effect of her fully consuming two Diamonds. Peridot just hoped White hadn't heard the door slam.

 

With a flick of her wrist, Peridot activated the inner doors to close on a timer. The first one, primarily made of glass, and far away from the gem, went down immediately. Every minute, the next door in the sequence would follow suit, and this would go on up until the final door just a meter away from the chute. It seemed like tight timing, but Peridot and her friends were already more than halfway through the tunnel. She resumed running and picked up her pace; she had fallen a bit more behind than Garnet than she cared for. Peridot was never much of a marathon runner with her tiny legs, but she willed herself to push her limits. Seeing Steven not too far ahead of Garnet helped Peridot maintain her pace.

 

Meanwhile, Amethyst had reached the chute. She had just enough time to be silly about her exit, and after all this drama, she desperately needed it. She bent over and giggled, then fell backwards. She was almost assuredly the only Crystal Gem who would be entering the ship butt-first. 5 Crystal Gems made it to home base.

 

That left only Steven, Garnet, and Peridot to wait on. Steven wasn't much of a runner himself, and Garnet refused to outpace him. If need be the case, she would grab him and sprint at her usual fast pace, but she didn't want to leave Peridot in the dust, and she knew Steven would demand they go back for her. She already had the tablet in one arm as it was.

 

Not even Peridot's willpower could make her little legs go much faster than she already was. And at that point Peridot wanted to smack herself because she realized just then she could have been air surfing with that steel beam or some other piece of metal instead this whole time. And it was far too late now to rectify that. However, the end was in sight.

 

A loud bang was heard just then; that was probably White destroying the front door on her way to destroying all others in her way. The light wasn't to blinding levels any longer, but Peridot dared to look back and saw nothing but the creepiest face ever in black over the white light. That actually made her go a good deal faster, but she still lagged behind Steven and Garnet a far-from-optimal distance.

 

To make matters worse, the timed doors were catching up on her. Steven was holding to his promise to keep moving, and minded Peridot's advice to not look back, thankfully, or he'd be freaking out right now. Garnet grimaced as she saw white light reflect from the back of the tunnel that grew stronger by the minute. She knew they would be cutting it close, but this was  _too_  close for her liking.

 

A glass door slammed down mere inches away from where Peridot passed, which made her jump up a bit as she ran; she clenched her teeth and bit back her instinctive shriek. That was just another thing that would slow her friends down. Since she just barely made it through the last "checkpoint", so to speak, Peridot knew she basically had a minute to cross a distance she normally wouldn't be able to in that timeframe. On top of that, she was running on fumes at this point. After everything she had been through over less than a day in, Peridot was ready to collapse and take a long nap once she reached her ship.

 

On the bright side, there were only two more checkpoints she needed to cross before getting locked out before they reached the end. Steven just now made it there, with Garnet roughly half a minute away… and Peridot about three and a half. She'd have to double her speed just to barely make the cut.

 

Peridot was about to curse herself for activating this feature, but it was actually slowing down White Diamond, who was only now halfway through. Still, she winced and whined while trying absolutely anything that came to mind to make her run faster.

 

Garnet crossed the finish line, but grimaced that Steven had not jumped down the chute yet. "Steven! You can't stay up here any longer! Get on the ship  _now!_ "

 

"I'm not leaving without you guys!" Steven insisted. "Why don't you go back and help Peridot? You know she's not exactly a runner."

 

Garnet sighed, because she wanted to. She really did. But she timed the sound of the doors dropping and found it was a minute per door. "It's too dangerous, Steven. White Diamond is not far behind us in here. And we can't risk getting locked out."

 

"But it's okay for Peridot to risk it?!" Steven was getting mad. "That's not like you, Garnet! But fine, I'LL just do it, then!"

 

"You'll do no such thing, Steven Universe," Garnet commanded as she picked up Steven and held him back. "If you want to help her, you'll board the ship immediately!"

 

Steven struggled, though he too was exhausted from that marathon, so he didn't have that much to resist with. "How does that help anything?! Just look!"

 

Peridot let out a  _"Yipe!"_ as the penultimate door fell down moments after she passed the checkpoint. It wasn't as close of a call as the last one, which would imply her running speed increased since the previous marker. She just needed to clear one more door. She growled as she saw Steven and Garnet at the end just standing there instead of being on the ship like they were supposed to.

 

"Hey! CLODS! Get on my PeriLuck  _right now!_ " She knew she shouldn't talk; it only took energy she could instead use to run faster.

 

"Not until you're up here with us!" Steven called back. "Like you said, we're leaving no gem behind!"

 

" _Nnnrrgh_ , we can still do that if you get on the ship, Steven! I'm not gonna tell you again! This is an  _order from your leader!_  " Peridot didn't like pulling rank, especially on someone she liked, but she didn't know how else to force him into that chute.

 

"Forget that! Leader or not, you can't call your mission a success if you don't make it with us!" Steven deflected the order; in fact, this seemed to be the first time someone actually challenged Peridot's authority. He opted to appeal to Peridot's ego. But really, these two were seriously arguing at a time like this.

 

"Don't say it like I don't know that, you stupid Steven!" Peridot didn't want to resort to insults, but there were a million things running through her mind, and she only had 20 seconds left on a 25-second running distance. "White Diamond's after after  _you_ , y'know! You're the last person who should be up here until the last second!"

 

Steven could see being hard on her didn't work. He instead opted to appeal to her weakness for praise. "I believe in you, Peri. Just concentrate, okay? Imagine you're coming home to me, like you haven't been home in years. We're gonna make it! Say it with me, now!"

 

Garnet was frozen with indecision. If anyone could defy the path of her vision, it would be Steven. But she didn't want to keep him up here any longer, and she knew Peridot felt the same.

 

Tears spilled out of the corner of her right eye. Hearing that made her calmer; more in control, and she felt herself go a little faster. She had a goal she wanted to leap into right this second. " _Y-you stupid, stupid…_ We're gonna make it!"

 

10 seconds.

 

"We're gonna make it!"

 

"We're gonna make it!"

 

Garnet prepared herself; whether Peridot made it or not, she was going to throw Steven down the chute herself if it came to that.

 

7 seconds.

 

"We're gonna make it!"

 

"We're gonna make it!"

 

It looked like she made up her lost time. If Peridot should just shave off one more second, she'd be safe, and she felt she could do it. Of course she could. Steven always gave her exactly what she needed.

 

4 seconds.

 

"We're gonna make it!"

 

_"We're gonna make it!"_

 

She was almost right in their faces.

 

2 seconds.

 

"YOU MADE IT!"

 

"I MADE-  _IIIIIIIIIIII_ -"

 

 

It was just a pity Peridot was a natural born klutz. One misstep on an indentation in the floor caused her to trip… and fall. She had been going so fast, as Steven felt he was watching Peridot fall in slow motion, that he thought she would slide through in true clumsy Peridot fashion.

 

Instead, the final door dropped, and instead of finding herself in Steven's loving arms, she found her head crashing hard against the door - specifically, its titanium plating around the edges. There was a shattering sound heard upon impact, but that wasn't Peridot's head breaking the glass.

 

That was Peridot's visor getting smashed to pieces by the metal she just roughly collided into.

 

**"NO! PERIDOOOOOT!"**

 

Steven rushed over to the opposite side of the door, looking at the damage. Neon green shards and pieces scattered together for the first time. Peridot was face-down and not moving, save for her twitching arms. Instinctively, he summoned his spiked shield and tried to ram the door, but it wouldn't budge.

 

"STEVEN! That's  _enough!_  We can't wait any longer! You can't break the door down!" Garnet hated sounding this cold, but it was what her leader wanted.

 

Just as she grabbed at Steven's sides, Peridot slowly rose up to see the reality of her situation, and that was enough to make her friends cease any and all movements. The glass was too thick for any kind of conversation to be held on opposite ends; it was too muffled.

 

Though clearly dazed from the concussion she probably had now, Peridot just smiled at them both. For the first time for both Steven and Garnet, they bore witness to the true color of Peridot's eyes: hazel on the right, and blue on the left. Heterochromia.

 

Her left hand rested on the glass; her right formed a thumbs-up for Garnet. Steven rested his hand on the glass, trying so desperately to think of some miracle that would let their hands truly make contact. Tears poured down from Garnet's visor as she forced a smile and returned the thumbs-up in kind.

 

Steven's eyes were full of tears, as to be expected. But even though his tears could revive the dead, they couldn't open a door. They couldn't save this life.

 

Peridot studied the two for a second, then started  _laughing_ _._ She was laughing in earnest; they didn't need to hear her to know that. Was it to bring their spirits up, or hers? Or maybe she wanted her friends to see a happy, goofy Peridot in her last moments before they would never see her again? She refused to cry, and she refused to stop smiling.

 

White Diamond was coming. The glass part of the door was just as strong as the kind she used in her own space ship… nothing would break that.

 

Peridot could've tried to hack the door, but she just didn't have the time. Especially when Garnet had her tablet now.

 

She could have even tried to will the door back up with her power, but she barely had the strength to do what she was doing already. She just barely knew where she was.

 

These two friends of hers were still there. She had to keep everybody safe, no matter what. Steven and Garnet certainly were not safe being here anymore. She had one last duty to perform as leader of the Crystal Gems.

 

Peridot whipped her head back to hear an explosion of glass. White Diamond would be here any moment now. She only let her smile fade at this time, knowing her friends couldn't see her face. It was back on immediately as she turned back to face Steven and Garnet; they both heard the crash, too.

 

It was time. Using both hands, she pointed to Steven and Garnet and then pointed down. It wasn't hard to figure out what meant. Garnet nodded, but Steven shook his head. That was to be expected. But it wasn't his choice to make.

 

"Steven… this is her last command to us as our leader," Garnet told him softly. "Don't disrespect her again. We have to leave; the others are waiting for us and she knows that. This is all we can give her… our respect for her as a leader, and our love for her as one of the family. Come on, now."

 

Garnet didn't have to deal with any resistance this time; it looked like Steven accepted this. She held Steven up and looked to Peridot one last time. The smile she gave them and the shine in her eyes made even Garnet not want to take that step down… but orders were orders, and the rest of the team's lives were at stake still. She nodded to the little gem, while Steven couldn't even speak; his tears just flowed freely over his cheeks. He wouldn't take his eyes off Peridot right up to the moment where he disappeared into the chute; Garnet followed not long after.

 

"What a bunch of sentimental clods… I expected better out of Garnet. You'd better make it out of here; I didn't build the PeriLuck for you to die in it."

 

It actually hurt to say that name now.

 

* * *

Garnet and Steven were roughly ejected from the chute into the ship, being banged hard against the wall before falling down. Well, Garnet took the brunt of it. Steven just didn't care right now.

 

"It's about time!" Amethyst shouted. "Hang on, hold up… are we  _still_  waiting for Peridot?!"

 

The look Steven gave her could kill. Amethyst promptly shut her mouth.

 

"Greg, start the ship. Emergency liftoff." Garnet was back on her feet.

 

Greg looked behind him to see Garnet there… seemingly more unreadable than usual. "Huh? Aren't we waiting for Peridot?"

 

"I officially reclaim my title as leader of the Crystal Gems," Garnet announced. "I carry my predecessor's final order: start the ship. We lift off immediately."

 

Greg got the implication. He quickly pushed the button before he let the emotional sorrow take over him.

 

And the PeriLuck took off… but was hindered by something important. It was tethered to Homeworld, still.

 

"It's that makeshift chute!" Pearl realized. "There was never a dislodging mechanism for it, was there?!"

 

Peridot just realized that folly herself. Now she felt she deserved this fate; that was such a stupid oversight on her part. Building that chute was literally the first thing they did when they took their first steps on Homeworld!

 

"C-can't you, I dunno,  _dislodge_  it manually?!" Greg wailed. With the velocity the ship was trying to go but couldn't, it was making a very uncomfortable time for everyone on board.

 

"It's too dangerous!" Pearl explained. "Even if I can force it off, the hatch is still open and this ship is trying to go mach 5!"

 

She didn't need to explain any more than that. Anyone who tried to fix this would no doubt be sucked out of the ship and fall right back into Homeworld.

 

Peridot wasn't letting anyone else lose their life today. Thankfully, the hatch was a simple thing to manipulate. She moved her hand in a way that resembled how someone would open a lid off a jar.

 

 

Little did she know that since the ship was on level with where she was imprisoned, some people could see her right out the window. Connie, Bismuth, and Amethyst, namely. They didn't understand the gesture until they heard the loud crunching sound that was the metal hatch slicing through the top of the plastic chute, severing the tie and finally freeing the PeriLuck from this world. The ship was gone within the blink of an eye.

 

"W-well… out of 8 Crystal Gems I had to watch out for here on Homeworld, including myself… 7 out of 8 isn't that bad." Peridot sighed. "That's… an 87.5% grade. A solid B+. And that's fine…"

 

_"You have already conceded to your fate, I see."_

 

"Oh. You're here. Took you long enough."

* * *

 

 

Lapis groaned as if she had a headache. "Where am- wait, this is the ship…"

 

She had just reformed in her assigned seat on the PeriLuck. The ship was still in the process on leaving Homeworld's atmosphere.

 

"Welcome back, Lapis…" Steven halfheartedly greeted, giving her the same amount of effort into hugging her. He happened to be sitting next to her.

 

"Yeah, glad you're back." Even Bismuth sounded like she had her soul sucked away. She rested a hand over Lapis' shoulder, but couldn't bring herself to look at her newly-reformed friend.

 

And Lapis indeed had even more of an upgrade to her outfit. A crop top featuring a half-star in dark blue to contrast the brighter shade above. She now wore pants for the first time; dark blue poofy pants, at that. It was fastened with a gold ribbon, and Lapis seemed to follow her own advice way back during the workstation portion of the mission and now donned a pair of golden sandals. She enjoyed her more refined new look, but was quick to notice no one seemed to care at all. In fact, they were downright depressed. And  _quiet_. Even Amethyst.

 

"I'm… sorry if this is a bad time, everyone, but… what's going on? You're acting like someone died."

 

Only Garnet had the strength to speak. She was seated ahead of Lapis, but she didn't even turn her head to face the newly-reformed gem. "Give it time. We'll be leaving the atmosphere very soon."

 

Lapis couldn't even begin to make sense of that. "What… what are you even talking about?"

 

Just then, the PeriLuck left the atmosphere. Everyone was officially free from Homeworld. The ship slowed down and righted itself to its proper alignment. Pearl walked over and pointed out which buttons to push to initiate autopilot. Lapis wondered why Pearl was the one explaining this; she didn't build the ship.

 

Before anyone could say or do anything else, the projections screen that displayed the trajectory, ETA, distance, time, et cetera switched to Peridot in what must have been a prerecording. She just stood there, looking solemn and dutiful before speaking in a tone similar to her eerie professional demeanor towards the end of the flight to Homeworld.

 

_"This is Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG reporting to the PeriLuck. Assuming my ship's calculations have not malfunctioned, it looks like all of you made it out of this alive… except perhaps one. Send the future me my regards; I was 75% certain I would perish in some way on this mission to Homeworld, but it's fine, really. This mission is too important to run away from. Hint-hint, Lapis."_

 

Lapis looked flustered, but sobered down quickly. She got it now… somebody  _did_ die while she was out.

 

_"But really, I thank you all for this time we spent together. It's been great; I mean it. And I mean it when I say I do love you all. The point of this message is to inform the lot of you that your digital devices, should you have one, will receive a file from me similar in format to this once this recording has concluded. I thought it would be fitting that my final messages to my wonderful Earth family would be in the form of the logs I did when I first came to Earth. Each message received is unique, and directed only to you, and preferably should only be heard by you. I believe I communicate better with these logs than I ever have in person. Someone understands that perfectly well, am I right, Amethyst?"_

 

Amethyst buried her face in her hair, trying to stifle her tears. "F-for cryin' out loud, P-Dot…"

 

_"That's all there is to report. Your return flight to Earth has long since been pre-programmed into the system. You'll be in auto-pilot for the majority of it, but once you approach Earth, I think you should man the controls, Pearl. You weren't there when the PeriLuck was built, but I have faith you'll catch on quickly. You always do."_

 

Pearl covered her mouth, but let her tears flow freely.

 

_"And Steven? Thank you for everything you've given me. I'd say you have no idea what you truly mean to me, but… well, you're about to find out. I hope it doesn't weird you out too much."_

 

"But I already found out!" Steven cried out before remembering this was a prerecording. "And… and it's  _not_  weird…"

 

_"Ugh, I'm rambling. I'll end the log here, then. I wish everyone a safe travel back to Earth. I pray you will never have to leave your planet ever again…"_

 

 

_**"** _ **_Peridot, out."_ **

* * *


End file.
